Ichigo starts up small solar plant in Japan

• Japanese real estate and also renewables capitalist Ichigo Inc (TYO:2337) said that today marked the start of operation of a 740-kW solar plant in Japan's Chiba prefecture.

The range, called Ichigo Chiba Wakaba-ku Omiyacho Nishi ECO Power Plant, is comprised of 1,648 panels set up on 9,854 square metres (106,067.6 sq ft) of idle farmland in Chiba city.

It is expected to generate over 837,000 kWh per year, sufficient to meet the annual power demand of 279 neighborhood homes, the company stated.

The plant is Ichigo's 57th functional solar ranch in Japan. With this new enhancement, the company's capability reaches 162.72 MW.

In the near term, the group expects to have 67 solar energy plants with an incorporated capacity of 199 MW, consisting of operations and also projects in development held by its yieldco Ichigo Green Infrastructure Fund Investment Corp (TYO:9282).