Fukushima to become RE Hub?

A public-private council was set up on Sunday in Fukushima in order to help the prefecture become a renewable energy hub in just a few years, the Japan Times reported.

During the upcoming summer the council will focus on developing market strategies for the wind and hydrogen segments, according to the report. The scheme is yet another step towards the fast reconstruction of Fukushima following the March 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami and the subsequent nuclear power crisis.

In the wind sector alone, the council will focus on finalising a plan for the provision of some 1.3 GWh of electricity generated by Fukushima turbines to Tokyo. The metropolitan area falls under the service scope of local utility Tokyo Electric Power Company Inc (TEPCO), which will establish a joint venture (JV) company with domestic sector players for the job with the financial support of the central government.

The council’s agenda also covers devising an action plan for the construction of a system for the production of large amounts of hydrogen from renewables in Fukushima by 2020. The hydrogen will be supplied to Tokyo and other areas and will be used in fuel-cell vehicles.