Solar Frontier completes CIS installation at Nagasaki Airport
Solar Frontier, a provider of CIS solar energy solutions, and Chopro, a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) distributor and solar power producer, have announced today the completion of an approximately 30MW solar power plant located next to Nagasaki Airport in Japan.
To celebrate its completion, the two companies hosted an opening ceremony earlier in the day, including representative guests from Nagasaki Prefecture.
Sol de Omura Minojima Solar Power Plant is the biggest solar installation in Nagasaki Prefecture and is also one of the biggest in Japan. The new power plant is expected to generate approximately 37 gigawatt-hours of electricity per year, equivalent to the annual power consumption of 7,500 households in Japan.
Solar Frontier and Chopro jointly established the company Nagasaki Solar Energy to develop and manage the new power plant. Chiyoda Corporate provided engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services and the land for this project was leased by Nagasaki Prefecture.
The project benefited from the support of regional companies, including a syndicate of local banks from the Kyushu region (led by Mizuho Bank) which provided non-recourse project financing. Electricity generated by the power plant is being sold to Kyushu Electric Power Company.
Sol de Omura Minojima's location next to Nagasaki Airport's 3,000m runway and on an offshore island presented the development team with a number of specific challenges. Solar Frontier provided its CIS solar panels, which offer anti-reflective properties so as not to affect aircraft operations.
The power plant was designed in accordance with height and other regulatory restrictions due to airplanes landing and taking off. A 10km submarine power cable was also laid in order to connect the power plant to the electric grid on mainland Kyushu. Construction, which began in April, 2015, was completed on schedule in July, 2016.
