Hamburg-based investment company Aquila Group is looking to invest “several hundred million dollars” in battery storage opportunities in Japan and to foray into its nascent wind power market.
The plans come on top of its 8 megawatt solar project in Japan’s Chiba prefecture which started commercial operations last year.
“We’re already looking at several hundred megawatts (MW) of battery storage business opportunities in Japan. It will be predominantly organic, new greenfield development,” Netoshi Kuriyama, newly appointed as Aquila Clean Energy’s Japan head, told Reuters.
Some of the investments could be with local players via joint ventures and other partnerships, said Kuriyama who formerly led Vestas Wind Systems’ Japan business.
He noted that the island of Kyushu is expanding in solar energy and Hokkaido is a promising area for wind power, making both places strong contenders for Aquila to operate battery storage businesses.
Kuriyama said Aquila wanted to be among the top 20 biggest onshore wind power companies in Japan
which is aiming to have 18 GW of onshore wind power by 2030, up from less than 5 GW now.
“We do not intend to be a mediocre player, we want to be significant,” he said.
Energy resource-poor Japan is seeking to expand in renewable energy such as solar and wind power to meet its goal of carbon-neutrality by 2050.
Reuters