Marubeni Corporation and Kyuden Mirai Energy Corporation (hereinafter, “KME”) have finalized the joint establishment of a new company within fiscal year 2024 to promote a long-term power sales business using roof-mounted solar power generation systems with battery storage (hereinafter, the “Project”) on Amami Oshima Island, Kagoshima Prefecture. The new company will be the first subsidiary to enter into a power purchase agreement (PPA) with a supply-demand adjustment function on Amami Oshima, and aims to introduce solar power generation facilities of approximately 10 MW on the island by fiscal year 2030.

Project Features
- Installation of solar power generation equipment on the roofs of customer homes, businesses, and public facilities, and sale of the electricity thereby generated
- Adjustments of power surpluses or shortfalls in the island’s power grid to contribute to grid stabilization achieved by remotely controlling and charging/discharging the installed storage batteries
- Contribution to making renewable energy the main power source on Amami Oshima and to BCP measures in the event of disasters

Background and Significance of the Project
Power supply on Amami Oshima Island primarily relies on thermal power generation, which presents a challenge in terms of initiatives to achieve decarbonization. Additionally, due to the small scale of the power grid, renewable energy sources, the output of which fluctuates with weather conditions, can easily lead to destabilizations to the power supply. To address these issues, Marubeni began demonstration tests for the Project on Amami Oshima in 2022*. As a result of confirming local needs and supply-demand adjustment capabilities, full-scale operations of solar power generation facilities commenced in October 2023 with such facilities and storage batteries currently installed at multiple locations on the island, and with the electricity thus generated now being sold. Going forward, as part of the Project, Marubeni will expand and develop these operations through the new company in collaboration with KME, which is responsible for renewable energy projects within the Kyushu Electric Power Group, a group seeking to pioneer Japan's decarbonization efforts from Kyushu. Marubeni will also work in cooperation with the Kagoshima branch of Kyushu Electric Power Corporation.

Future Prospects
Through the Project, Marubeni and KME will leverage the respective expertise they have cultivated in the power business to facilitate the spread of renewable energy as well as a stable power supply on Amami Oshima Island, thereby contributing to the sustainable development of the local community. The two companies will furthermore aim to expand to other regions facing similar challenges by leveraging the knowledge gained from the Project.

*Related release
May 31, 2022
Demonstration Project Launched for Long-Term Power Sales Service of Rooftop Solar PV Systems with Battery Energy Systems on Amami Oshima Island
https://www.marubeni.com/en/news/2022/release/00041.html