Installing Large-Scale Solar Power Generation Systems

June 17, 2021

In February 2021, the THK RHYTHM Hamamatsu plant installed around 3,700 solar panels on its factory roof as part of a large-scale, 1,830 kW self-consumption solar power generation system. This system is expected to generate 2.19 million kilowatt-hours of energy annually (enough to power 490 households) and reduce CO₂ emissions by 1,035 tons/year. The company’s Kyushu factory also installed an 832 kW system during the same time frame, which is expected to generate 930 thousand kilowatt-hours annually and reduce CO₂ emissions by 441 tons/year.

Both facilities have adopted a PPA model* (developer: TESS Engineering Co., Ltd.). Since the systems are used in conjunction with the pre-existing cogeneration equipment at the Hamamatsu factory and the independent power conditioners at the Kyushu factory, they can be utilized even when the power goes out after a disaster, so they serve as one part of each facility’s BCP measures. We will continue to promote the use of renewable energy in order to manufacture products in an environmentally friendly way. In addition, as companies are now being called upon to promote the SDGs and ESG management, we will actively make strides in all these areas in order to heighten our corporate value.

• * PPA is an abbreviation of “power purchase agreement.” In this arrangement, the consumer of electricity provides a developer with space on its premises, roof, etc., and the developer installs, operates, and maintains the solar power generation system for free. At the same time, the developer monitors how much of the generated energy the customer consumes, and the customer pays them for the corresponding electric charges.

• Return to Sustainability TOP