ENEOS Renewable Energy will repower the 12MWAC/12.2MWDC Uruma Mega Solar Power Plant in Uruma City, Okinawa Prefecture, the company said on February 18, 2025.
“Following issues, such as connector failures, caused by salt damage, we begun evaluating repairs,” said an ENEOS Renewable Energy spokesperson in an email response to Japan Energy Hub. “We found that, with recent panel performance improvements and price declines, replacing panels would be profitable and opted for repowering,” the spokesperson continued.
ENEOS Renewable Energy Management, the company’s asset management subsidiary, started the process in November 2024. Osaka-based Hamada Co. is in charge of removing and recycling the approximately 50,000 existing panels. Fukuoka-based High-Tex will work on installing the new panels. Construction work on the project is expected to be completed in April 2025.
Uruma Mega Solar Power Plant was FIT-certified in FY2013 when the tariff for 10kW+ solar power plants was 36 yen per kWh. It was commissioned in March 2015.
Repowering just a decade after commissioning highlights potential durability challenges for solar projects in Japan’s coastal and remote island areas, where environmental conditions accelerate wear and tear.
