Launch of the '100-Year Solar Tohoku Project': A Business Model for Solving Social Issues

Kamei Corporation (Headquarters: Sendai, Miyagi; President: Akio Kamei; hereinafter 'Kamei'), Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Hiroshi Kubota; hereinafter 'Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking'), 77 Strategic Investment No. 2 Investment Limited Partnership (hereinafter '77 Capital'), managed by 77 Capital Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Sendai, Miyagi; President: Akira Konno), and Hirasol Energy Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo; President: Min Li; hereinafter 'Hirasol Energy') have entered into an anonymous partnership agreement with '100-Year Solar Tohoku LLC' (hereinafter '100-Year Solar Tohoku') to address the issues of waste and abandonment of solar power plants in the Tohoku region and to promote decarbonization through long-term stable operation. Additionally, 100-Year Solar Tohoku has concluded a project finance agreement with The Kitanippon Bank, Ltd. (Headquarters: Morioka, Iwate; President: Kyoji Ishizuka; hereinafter 'Kitanippon Bank').

1. Background and Purpose of the Project

The '100-Year Solar Tohoku Project' is a social issue-solving business that acquires and aggregates small-to-medium-sized solar power plants scattered across the Tohoku region to ensure long-term stable operation, looking beyond the expiration of the Feed-in Tariff (FIT) period.

Many solar power plants in Japan spread rapidly after the introduction of the FIT system in 2012, and there are concerns regarding the disposal and abandonment of these plants once the 20-year FIT period expires. In particular, small-to-medium-sized solar power plants (under 1MW), which account for approximately 90% of domestic solar power plants, are expected to face increasing issues with maintenance and repair due to the aging of owners and rising maintenance costs. Furthermore, the Tohoku region faces specific challenges such as reduced power generation due to snowfall, panel and mounting damage, and increased output curtailment, necessitating more appropriate monitoring and repairs.

To solve these issues, '100-Year Solar Tohoku' was established to acquire and aggregate small-to-medium-sized solar power plants in the Tohoku region, aiming for long-term stable operation by utilizing Hirasol Energy's strengths in 'repowering technology' and 'digital technology.' Kamei, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking, 77 Capital, and Hirasol Energy have each signed anonymous partnership agreements. Through project financing from the local financial institution, Kitanippon Bank, we have established a financial foundation to support long-term stable operation beyond the FIT period, and we will promote this as a project that solves social issues in the Tohoku region in collaboration with local finance.

2. Project Features (Operational and Technical Aspects)

100-Year Solar Tohoku plans to acquire a total of 10MW of small-to-medium-sized solar power plants in the Tohoku region by 2029. The acquired plants will undergo performance evaluation and analysis using the technology of Hirasol Energy, which serves as the asset manager, and will be repowered as necessary to restore them to their expected power generation levels. Hirasol Energy utilizes modeling technology based on proprietary weather data and 30-minute interval power generation data to analyze plant performance.