Post-Fukushima Renewable Energy Policy in Japan

Japan is deficient of domestic fossil fuel energy sources and developed energy structures that depend primarily on imported fuels and nuclear power. The country's energy fuel mix has been required to shift after the country experienced a catastrophic nuclear accident at the Fukushima Power Plant in 2011, which induced all of the country's nuclear power plants to shut down. To fill some of the gap left by the lost power, Japan boosted its renewable energy capacity with the launch of a feed-in-tariff (FIT) scheme in July 2012. It has been shown a success, especially in the solar PV sector; however, dark clouds still hang over Japan's renewable energy industry due to the lack of appropriate policy regime that protects and enhances renewable energy development within Japan's conventional power market. This book investigates renewable energy policies and renewable energy market in Japan, identifies the country's advantages and barriers for renewable energy promotion through applying a SWOT analysis, and creates recommendations that provide direction that will be most effective.