Kyushu Electric Power is planning to suspend responding to applications from renewable-energy producers applying for grid accessing, reports Renewable Energy World.com.
First, the utility will check how much more clean energy it can manage. The utility supplies power to the southern island of Kyushu and has imposed restriction from yesterday.
Imbalances produced in supply to the grid may cause blackouts. During the suspension, the utility will analyze in coming months how much more renewable electricity capacity it can tolerate, said, Akihiko Shinkai, deputy general manager.
Under Japan’s incentives introduced in 2012 provided to clean energy, utility operators need to buy it at terms and prices set by Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. These feed-in tariffs cover purchases of electricity generated clean resources causing a boom in solar installations across Japan.
By 2013, Japan had 42,000 megawatts of installed renewable energy capacity and solar is the second biggest source with almost 15,000 megawatts of capacity.
Kyushu Electric’s announces its decision at a time when solar developers are facing rigid inquiry from the government, which is concerned that some projects are not done as planned.
In addition, the capacity of the grid to handle new energy sources is also being tested. It is found that the power grid in Japan isn’t equipped to handle the clean energy influx with grid and market constraints limiting the development.
Recently, Japan had approved 71 GW of new renewable energy projects since the beginning of feed-in tariff program.
Hokkaido Electric Power’s grid was nearing its maximum ability to accept solar power from projects that are 2 megawatts or larger. Besides, Okinawa Electric Power was also nearing its maximum ability to absorb solar power.
Hokkaido and Okinawa are both conducting experiments with storage batteries to handle extra capacity generated by solar power projects.