RENEWABLE ENERGY INVESTMENT RISK ANALYSIS FOR LOW-CARBON CITY... 29The result could be used to guide policies employed in other cities
and countries. Risks and returns from renewable energy investments are
heavily dependent on FIT rates, solar module prices, and solar PV usage
periods. If households continue to use solar PV for personal electricity
use, investment gains will increase. Although profits may not return,
there are benefits in terms of electricity fee reductions and declines in
CO 2 emissions, which are the same as those found for both the 20- and
10-year FIT scenarios. The same implications could be applied to the
commercial sector. In addition, for the commercial sector, in comparing
tax policies, we found that tax policy effects depend on company finan-
cial conditions. Recently, although FIT rates have declined in Japan,
total solar module costs have declined over a matter of years, which may
shorten return periods while increasing renewable energy investment
and operation returns.
However, we are also aware of limitations within FIT systems, frame-
works, and policies (e.g., regulation changes). Although FIT schemes are
believed to mitigate price risks while delivering on long-term government
promises, when such beliefs are in question, policy changes to FIT systems
may be used to adjust market conditions in a country.
notes
City of Yokohama. Yokohama Wind Energy (Japanese). http://www.city.yoko-
hama.lg.jp/kankyo/ondan/furyoku/
Data source is Procurement Pricing Committee. Ministry of Economy, Trade and
Industry (Japanese). http://www.meti.go.jp/committee/gizi_0000015.html
Feed-in tariff publication of installed capacity database. Ministry of Economy,
Trade and Industry (METI) (Japanese). http://www.fit.go.jp/statistics/
public_sp.html
Calculated from electricity power generation statistics published by the Agency
for Natural Resources. http://www.enecho.meti.go.jp/statistics/electric_
power/ep002/results.html#headline2
MOEJ (2015c). About renewable energy installation promotion fund
(Japanese). https://www.env.go.jp/policy/local_re/funds4.html
METI FIT website http://www.fit.go.jp/statistics/public_sp.html
In the FIT system in Japan before April 2014, there was no obligation on time
periods for solar PV to be installed after it was registered.
TEPCO 2103. Notice of renewable energy power generation promotion levy
unit price and solar power promotion generation promotion levy unit price
(Japanese) http://www.tepco.co.jp/e-rates/individual/shin-ene/saiene/
pdf/20130401.pdf