The entrepreneur in agriculture Photo Agri in Hamamatsu city, Shizuoka, started selling of its new product "Solar Photo Guard" to prevent harmful insects.

The product has a solar panels and a LED of yellow color, which insects such as diamondback moth and armyworm dislike.

The price is from 34 to 36 thousand JPY.

Chinichi Shimbun: 2013/06/21
http://www.chunichi.co.jp/article/shizuoka/20130621/CK2013062102000093.html
Photo Agri (in Japanese)
http://www.photo-agri.com/

Kobe Bussan Gave Up 10MW Solar Project in Yuubetsu, Hokkaido

The business-use food dealer Kobe Bussan in Hyogo prefecture gave up its mega-solar project of 10 MW scale in Yuubetsu town of Hokkaido prefecture.

Hokkaido Electric Power had recently announced that the electricity receiver company would only have been able to accept 400 MW in total in the case of a solar facility more than 20 MW.

Hokkaido Shimbun: 2013/06/21 09:49
http://www.hokkaido-np.co.jp/news/economic/474864.html

Solar Frontier's CIS Module Reached 14.6% Conversion Efficiency

Solar Frontier, a 100% subsidiary of the old company Showa Shell Sekiyu, recently developed CIS thin-film solar module of 14.6% conversion efficiency. The details are in the link below:

Solar Frontier: Press Release 2013/06/18 (in English)
http://www.solar-frontier.com/eng/news/2013/C020760.html
EIC Net via Nikkei BP: 2013/06/18
http://www.eic.or.jp/news/?act=view&serial=30314&oversea=0

Golf Courses Turning to Megasolar Stations in Northern Kanto Plain

SB Energy, a subsidiary of SoftBank, started the operation of its "SoftBank Shinto Solar Park"(2.4 MW) in Shinto Village of Gunma prefecture in July last year.

Taking this as an example, Tokyo Shimbun reported the recent tendency that megasolar stations are installed on golf courses: 30 throughout the country so far. Among them 10 are in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area, especially in Northern Kanto Plain.

Those golf courses were made in the so-called Bubble Economy in late 80s and have been in a long-term predicament today.

Tokyo Shimbun: 2013/06/21
http://www.tokyo-np.co.jp/article/national/news/CK2013062102000133.html

Meiwa Electric to Enter Mini-Hydro Manufacturing

Meiwa Electric Motors in Itoshima city, Fukuoka, is going to produce mini-hydro power generators from the fiscal year 2015.

The company sees there are high demends for low-cost hydraulic generator on irrigation channel.

Nikkei: 2013/6/19 12:00
http://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXNZO56357040Y3A610C1LX0000/
Meiwa Electric Motors
http://www.meiwa-ss.co.jp/gaiyo_0.html

Kyudenko to Start 1.7MW Megasolar in Nagasu, Kumamoto

The equipment installation firm Kyudenko in Fukuoka city, Fukuoka prefecture, announced on 18th that it would start mega-solar business in Nagasu town of Kumamoto prefecture,

Together with Kyuko Lease and JFE Engineering, Kyudenko founded a new company "Kyushu Shine Energy" for the project of 1.7 MW.

The installation cost is 550 million JPY, and the operation will start in September.

MSN Region: 2013.6.19 02:12
http://sankei.jp.msn.com/region/news/130619/kmt13061902120000-n1.htm

New 'Kawara' Roof Tile to Fit Solar Panels

The biggest Kawara (Japanese traditional roof tile) manufacturer Tsuruya started selling new roof tiles which well fit solar panels.

The tile doesn't have a traditional bend typical for Kawara, so that photovoltaic panels look better on the roof.

Nikkei: 2013/6/19 12:00
http://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXNZO56359390Y3A610C1L91000/
Tsuruya (in English)
http://www.try110.com/en/

Toshiba Subsidiary in China to Sell Hydro Turbines for Project in Laos

Toshiba Hydro Power in Hangzhou, China, received an order of three hydraulic turbines of 80 MW scale from a Chinese investment company (中水電海外投資有限公司) for its project in Laos.

Turbines will be shipped from January 2014 and the power station, Nam Ou No.5, will start by the end of 2015.

For Toshiba group this is the third case of hydro turbine sales for projects in Laos.

International Business Times: 2013/06/16 21:38
http://jp.ibtimes.com/articles/45440/20130616/1371386281.htm
Toshiba Hydro Power (Hangzhou)
http://www.toshiba-thpc.com/

Marubeni Received Order of Hydro Station Improvement in Myanmar

Marubeni received an order from Myanmar's public corporation to improve its Balu Chaung No.2 hydroelectric power plant.

The order volume is 1.2 bilion JPY.

The power station was constructed by Marubeni and Hitachi in 1960, as Japan's first war compensation in Myanmar.

Nikkei 2013/6/18 0:36
http://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXNASDD16003_X10C13A6TJ2000/

Floating Off-Shore Wind Turbine

10 companies including Marubeni, together with Tokyo University, are going to construct off-shore wind turbines of floating type in Fukushima prefecture. They will start operation in mid-October.

In the first phase the consortium will install a turbine of 2 MW scale and a floating substation.
Two more turbines will be added by the end of fiscal year 2015.
The investment is estimated to be 22 billion JPY at this stage.

When completed successfully, it will be the world's first commercial-base project of off-shore floating wind turbine.

Bloomberg: 2013/06/18 10:00
http://www.bloomberg.co.jp/news/123-MOIUTU6KLVR701.html

Scaledown of Megasolar Demamded in Okayama: Endangered Harrier Nesting

A megasolar project of 230 MW in Setouchi city of Okayama prefecture might need to scaledown.

The project site turned out to be a nesting ground of Chuuhi, or eastern marsh harrier in English, which is nominated one of the endangered species by Ministry of Environment and the prefecture itself.

The Wild Bird Society of Japan Okayama branch said that the best way to protect the harrier would be a total cancellation of the project and that it demanded the project consortium to reduce the project into land usage of less than 150 hectares.

The original plan was to utilize 250 hectares of an old saltpan.

Sankei: 2013.6.13 19:03
http://sankei.jp.msn.com/science/news/130613/scn13061319050004-n1.htm

Nozato to Construct 1.2MW Solar: First Megasolar in Tottori city

Nozato Electrical Engineering & Construction in Osaka is going to construct a megasolar station in Tottori city of Tottori prefecture.

The construction will start by the end of June, and the operation start will be in September this year.

The company will install 4,800 panels of polycrystal silicon made in India. The annual generation will be 1.1 million kWh.

Nihonkai Shimbun: 2013/06/12
http://www.nnn.co.jp/news/130612/20130612004.html

Solar-Powered Keyboard by Logicool

*This product doesn't seem to be made-in-Japan nor strongly related to Japan, but it is really cool :)

The list price is 8,480 JPY, but Keitai Watch reported it cost less than 6,000 by on-line shopping.

Keitai Watch: 2013/6/17 06:00
http://k-tai.impress.co.jp/docs/column/stapa/20130617_603769.html
Logicool Wireless Solar Keyboard k760 (in US site)
http://www.logitech.com/en-us/product/wireless-solar-keyboard-k760-for-mac?crid=1221
Logicool Wireless Solar Keyboard k760 (in JP site)
http://www.logicool.co.jp/ja-jp/product/wireless-solar-keyboard-k760-for-mac?crid=26

JNC to Launch Megasolar in Ichihara, Chiba

JNC, the business transter company of Chisso, announced on 17th that it would start megasolar business in Ichihara city, Chiba prefecture.

The output capacity of the station will be 11 MW. The annual generation equals to the consumption of 3,200 households. And all the electricity will be sold to Tokyo Electric Power.

The investment is estimated to be 3.1 billion JPY.
The company plans the operation start in June next year.

Sankei: 2013.6.17 18:52
http://sankei.jp.msn.com/economy/news/130617/biz13061718530013-n1.htm

Sharp Upgraded Solar Cell Conversion Efficiency to 44.4%

Sharp updated its world-highest conversion efficiency of photovoltaic cell to 44.4%, 0.9% more than last upgrade of its own.

The cell consists of triple light-absorbing layers of chemical compounds.

Nikkan Kogyo 2013/06/17
http://www.nikkan.co.jp/news/nkx0320130617bjag.html