"Appeal and Policy Recommendations by NPO PV-Net on the Issue ofJapanese Electric Power Companies' Grid Access Suspension to New
Renewable Energy Projects"
A sudden notification of September 24th 2014 by Kyushu Electric Power Company
to suspend grid access to new renewable energy projects due to alleged shortageof their grid capacity was immediately followed by its implementation on the very
next day, September 25th 2014. Although shortage of grid capacity has been
foreseen for a long time, the abrupt suspension without any consultation nor
notification period was emulated by Tohoku Electric Power Company and Shikoku
Electric Power Company. The suspension has caused fundamental confusion and thegravest concern among those engaged in solar power projects such as solar project
developers, installers, and material suppliers. The suspension was an enormous
shock to renewable energy operators and electricity consumers across the nation
too because it would hinder a current precious momentum of spread of renewableenergies promoted by the Feed-in Tariff.
NPO PV-Net has been promoting renewable energies from a viewpoint of citizens
and electricity consumers and aiming at establishment of a healthy regionallyrecycled distributed-energy society. Based upon such principles, we hereby present
to the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry and the Chairman of the Federationof Electric Power Companies of Japan the following "Appeal and Policy
Recommendations on the Issue of Japanese Electric Power Companies' Grid Access
Suspension to New Renewable Energy Projects".
A full text of "Appeal and Policy Recommendations on the Issue of Japanese ElectricPower Companies' Grid Access Suspension to New Renewable Energy Projects" isavailable at the following URL (the Japanese language).
http://www.greenenergy.jp/pdf/appeal.pdf

Major points of "Appeal and Policy Recommendations on the Issue of JapaneseElectric Power Companies' Grid Access Suspension to New Renewable Energy
Projects" are as follows:Appeal:1. The issue of grid access suspension to new renewable energy projects should be
examined and coped with by the government's renewable energy policy rather thaneach electric power company's corporate policy.
2. Regulations and arrangements should be immediately formulated by thegovernment and electric power companies in order to compensate, avert, andminimize damages which were and shall be inflicted upon those engaged inrenewable energy projects due to electric power companies' unilateral and wholesalesuspension.
3. Regulations and arrangements should be immediately formulated by thegovernment and electric power companies in order to provide a priority to local
renewable energy operators and minimize their damages due to electric powercompanies' unilateral and wholesale suspension.
4. The grid access suspension period should be as short as possible. Electric powercompanies should consult and work with the government, renewable energy
operators, and civil society to formulate an arrangement that will avoid recurrenceof grid access suspension in future.

Policy recommendations:
1. The Japanese Renewable Energy Act should be amended so that it will include
provisions that obligate electric power companies to immediately and as a priority
purchase, transmit and distribute the entire available quantity of electricity fromrenewable energy sources.[1][2][3]2. Smart balancing between supply and demand should be fully pursued. Electricpower companies should turn down conventional fired-power stations during
daytime when electricity generated by renewable sources increases. Electricityconsumers should shift their demand to off-peak times. Energy storage using
pumped-hydro and storage batteries should be implemented.

3. Grid systems should immediately be optimised, strengthened and expanded inorder to guarantee the purchase, transmission and distribution of the electricity
generated from renewable energy sources.[4]4. Lessons for the coming deregulation of Japan's electricity sector should belearned from the current issue of grid access suspension: The neutrality andpolitical-independenceoftheOrganization

for Nationwide

CoordinationofTransmission Operators should be ensured. Discussions of the managerial board of
the Organization for Nationwide Coordination of Transmission Operators should betransparent and disclosed publicly.
October 4th 2014

Notes:[1] The German Renewable Energy Act (EEG) provides that "grid system operators
shall immediately and as a priority purchase, transmit and distribute the entire
available quantity of electricity from renewable energy sources" (EEG Section 5,Section 8).
http://www.bmub.bund.de/fileadmin/bmuimport/files/english/pdf/application/pdf/eeg_2012_en_bf.pdf
As a result of that, German electric power companies turn down conventional firedpower stations during daytime when electricity generated by renewable energies
increases. For example, at past-noon of May 11th, 2014, as many as 74% of total
electricity was produced by renewable energies in Germany.
Reference: "Germany Generates Record-Setting 74 Percent of Energy From
Renewables" by Brandon Baker, May 14th, 2014, EcoWatch
http://ecowatch.com/2014/05/14/germany-record-setting-renewables/[2] What is remarkable is that, despite the spread of renewable energies, Germangrid systems remain most reliable in Europe.
Reference: "German grid more stable in 2013" by Craig Morris, August 25th, 2014,
The German Energiewende
http://energytransition.de/2014/08/german-grid-more-stable-in-2013/

[3] Germany already decided to phase out nuclear power by 2022. And, in Germany,
it is expected that fired-power electricity generation is going to play a role of "backup" for renewable energy electricity generation.
Reference: "Fossil Fuels Fading Away — Moving Towards Becoming Backup Power"
by Giles Parkinson, Clean Technica, August 28th, 2012
http://cleantechnica.com/2012/08/28/fossil-fuels-fading-away-moving-towardsbecoming-backup-power/[4] The German Renewable Energy Act (EEG) provides that "Upon the request of
those interested in feeding in electricity, grid system operators shall immediatelyoptimise, strengthen and expand their grid systems in accordance with the best
available technology in order to guarantee the purchase, transmission anddistribution of the electricity generated from renewable energy sources" (EEGSection 9). And, "The grid system operator shall bear the costs of optimising,strengthening and expanding the grid system" (EEG Section 14).
http://www.bmub.bund.de/fileadmin/bmuimport/files/english/pdf/application/pdf/eeg_2012_en_bf.pdf

Contact information on the above appeal and policy recommendations:
NPO PV-Net
TEL: 81-3-5805-3577 FAX: 81-3-5805-3588,
Email: info@greenenergy.jp
The English translation and notes were prepared by Nobuaki Matsuzaki,
International Affairs Division, PV-Net