As part of a national program to cut greenhouse gas emissions, Japanese officials want 30% of residential households to be powered (at least in part) with solar energy by 2030. Fourteen million households will need to be fitted with solar panels to reach this target – a potentially heroic increase from the current 400,000 homes that have panels today.
Although Japan (mainly Sharp) produces half of the solar modules in the world, the equipment has been out of reach for the average household, costing up to two million yen ($18,000) for a family of four to go solar. The government is proposing to fund a research institute in 2008 - to the shamisen tune of 2 billion yen ($18M) - which they hope will decrease the cost of the technology by increasing its efficiency and reducing its generation costs.
Via The Japan Times
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JAN 03
"agreed. Nanosolar FTW 1 thumbs up..."
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