J-POWER began commercial operation of its first extra high-voltage solar asset, the 30MWAC/41.2MWDC Kitakyushu City Hibikinada Solar Power Plant, on May 27, 2025.
According to a statement issued the same day, the power plant was built on a 335,000m2 site within the premises of the company’s Wakamatsu Operations and General Management Office. Construction began in July 2023. Commissioning took place about two months behind the originally planned March 2025 target. The project was awarded a 10.33 yen per kWh feed-in-tariff (FIT) in Japan’s 10th (FY2021’s third) solar auction.
Kitakyushu City Hibikinada Solar Power Plant follows J-POWER’s first large-scale solar power plant, the high-voltage 2MWAC/2.7MWDC Himeji City Oshio Solar Power Plant in Hyogo Prefecture, which was commissioned in November 2024. The asset was originally awarded a 10.34 yen FIT in the same auction but was later converted to the feed-in-premium (FIP) scheme to enable a virtual PPA with Tokyo Metro.
To date, J-POWER has not disclosed similar plans for the power plant in Kitakyushu City. However, given the relatively low FIT price, it is likely the asset will be converted to FIP if the company is able to secure offtakers for its output.
In its 2023 annual report, J-POWER said it is “attempting to develop solar power generation, which has a proven track record in the U.S. and other nations” by utilizing land it owns in Japan, citing the two now-commissioned projects. It is unclear whether the company, which also provides on-site solar PPA services, currently has any other major solar projects in its pipeline.
