Keynote SpeechAdnan Z. Amin
(Director General, International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA))
Keynote Speech, October 14, 2011Your Imperial Highness, His Excellency Prime Minister Noda, Chairman Saito, Honourable
guests, Ladies and gentlemen, it is a great honour to have been asked to give the keynotespeech in Japan’s Global Environmental Action (GEA) International Conference 2011,
before such an august audience, and to represent the International Renewable Energy
Agency (IRENA), which is a new intergovernmental organisation created by theinternational community to support our common transition to a sustainable energy futurefor all.
The focus of the GEA this year is on “Building Sustainable Societies throughReconstruction: Working with the International Community for Regenerating Japan”. It
is highly symbolic that IRENA was invited to give the keynote today in the aftermath ofthe devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan earlier this year. And I would like toexpress the sympathy of all of us to the victims of that disaster. Around the world we wereshocked by the severity of the disaster and we were humbled by the strength and courageshown by the Japanese people in responding to that disaster.
Indeed, renewable energy can make an essential contribution to reconstructing Japan’s
devastated areas and communities. Beyond reconstruction in the Tohoku region,
renewable energy can play a vital role in Japan’s energy landscape and in reviving Japanese
entrepreneurship, opening a new growth path for decades to come. An importantconsideration in a crisis affected global economy looking for new growth areas around theworld.
Mr. Chairman, at the outset, I would like to thank you and the Japanese Government andpeople not only for your warm reception and hospitality you have extended me, but also foryour support in establishing and taking forward the work of IRENA. Japan is a founding
member of IRENA, and a key member of our Council that has played a major role in theestablishment and early work of IRENA.
I am deeply convinced that renewable energy can play a pivotal role in the future energy mix
in Japan thanks to three essential actors: the Japanese Government and Parliament who are
currently strengthening the enabling framework for renewables; the powerful contributionthat Japanese public opinion can make to shape a more sustainable society; and Japan’sunique industrial base and human capital, which can generate positive change very rapidly
and which has developed an outstanding record of success through innovation.

26 |Let me start with a few facts and figures regarding the acceleration of renewable energy
uptake worldwide. Renewable energies already account for a large share of global electricityproduction. In 2010, they supplied 20% of the global total electricity generation and,
constituted one quarter of global installed power capacity. The traditional sources ofrenewable energy, hydropower and biomass, represent the larger share of today’s renewableenergy supply and have further expansion potential. Wind power has recently seen a boom
in investment and will continue to grow rapidly in the coming few years. In the mediumterm, we expect solar power, both photovoltaic panels and concentrating solar power plants,
as well as biofuels and other emerging technologies to make an ever larger contribution.
In May 2011, earlier this year, the IPCC’s Special Report on Renewable Energy Sources
and Climate Change Mitigation (SRREN) was released in Abu Dhabi in the United ArabEmirates which also serves as the host country for IRENA. The noteworthy finding of thereport are that:-Firstly, close to 80 percent of the world‘s energy supply could be met by renewables
by mid-century if backed by the right enabling public policies, and-Secondly, the rising penetration of renewable energies could lead to cumulative
greenhouse gas savings equivalent to 220 to 560 Gigatonnes of carbon dioxide(GtC02eq) between 2010 and 2050.
Despite the global financial crisis and sluggish economic recovery, new global investment
in clean energy reached USD 243 billion in 2010, up 30% from the 2009 level. All thesenumbers clearly show that renewables have now moved into the mainstream and are nolonger a niche market.
At the same time, due to growing market shares and economies of scale, we have recently
seen significant cost reductions. The cost of solar photovoltaic dropped by half last year
and again by 20% this year already. Turn-key PV system prices are expected to drop by 50%
by 2020. The cost of onshore wind turbines has been divided by three since the early 1980s.
Wind power generation is now closing the gap with thermal generation in several countries.
Preliminary results from an upcoming IRENA study presented during our recent official
opening of the IRENA Innovation and Technology Centre (IITC) in Bonn demonstrate
clearly that the price of renewable energy technologies decreased constantly over the last
decade, driving the prices of renewable electricity closer to conventional sources. IRENA
will publish a series of working papers on the breakdown of costs and benefits, andpotential cost reduction for all technologies in order to better inform decision-makers facedwith decisions on energy investment for the future.
Let me now turn to Japan’s energy policy. I know that there is an intense discussion now
going on in the wake of the Fukushima disaster about the future energy policy. Japan’sambitious nuclear programmes were developed to meet a strongly growing energy demandin an import dependant sector, while at the same time reduce carbon emissions and decrease
the country’s dependency on fossil fuels.
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In 2010, 82% of Japan’s primary energy supply, and 63% of its electricity, was supplied
by fossils fuels. The share of renewable energy in the energy matrix is relatively modest
but some renewable technologies are well established. For example, hydropower in 2010
represented 7% of the electricity production. Other technologies, in particular, solar, wind,biomass and geothermal have a strong potential for development in Japan.
In 2010, Japan had the fourth largest amount of newly installed PV capacity in the world(1GW) and the third largest total installed PV capacity (3.6 GW). In 2010, Japan produced
10TWh of electricity from biomass. These are impressive figures.
The Fukushima disaster caused Japan to lose at once 20% of its nuclear electricity supply,
a serious situation for any country. Japan has committed to reducing its greenhousegas emissions by 6% below 1990 levels, which is an ambitious target given the fact thatits energy-related CO2 emission intensity is one of the lowest among OECD member
countries. In addition, the government has put strong emphasis on introducing energy
efficiency policies, such as labelling and the Top Runner programme for appliances andvehicles. You are to be congratulated for such a policy of global responsibility.
A major step was taken last month when Japan’s Diet passed a renewable energy law setting
an obligation on regional power utilities to buy all the electricity produced by wind, solar orbiomass operators at fixed prices, thereby establishing a feed-in-tariff (FIT). The law, whichgoes into effect in July 2012, sets ambitious targets for new renewable capacity within thenext decade, nearly five times that currently operating in the country. One reason why this isso significant from our perspective is that a major positive characteristic of feed-in-tariffs istheir ability to lower investment risks and ensure investment stability. Experience has shownthat long-term stability and predictability of government support is a crucial element totrigger investments. This law represents a major milestone in the reformulation of Japaneseenergy policy.
Another fundamental success factor to trigger the installation of additional renewablecapacity is the definition of a “priority access” for renewables. As renewable electricity
would be generated in areas often far from the load centres of Japan’s urban and industrial
hubs priority access to the grid would provide an assurance to generators that they will beable to sell and transmit their electricity at all times given the variable nature of solar PV andwind.
Interconnectivity across regions also holds the key to the greater deployment of renewableenergy sources in Japan. A few years ago experts worried about the reliability of electricity
supply with high shares of variable renewables, but we have made much progress since then.
The experience in Denmark, Germany, Spain and even China shows that technology now
allows high shares of variable renewables to be successfully and reliably supplied to nationalgrids. Greater interconnection capacity between regions allows for higher levels of variable
sources to be integrated into the system.
28 |Renewable energy in Japan currently enjoys tremendous support from the general public
particularly as a result of the recent events. Transforming this enthusiasm into reality is achallenge but also a wonderful opportunity for Japan.
GEA is an excellent example of the vibrant Japanese multi-stakeholder dialogue. The
public debate over reconstruction is turning out to be much broader than restoring broken
infrastructure and compensating victims. It is encompassing a wide range of nationalpolicies, such as the country’s energy policy and consumption patterns that probably will
determine the growth path for decades to come. It is a debate that must lead to intelligent
sustainable solutions.
It is truly a moment of opportunity that must be seized. Developing renewable energies
at a sufficiently rapid pace to restructure the energy mix will lead to investments, jobs andsustainable economic growth as well as improved security of energy supply and reduced
dependency from fossil fuels that have seen such price volatility in recent years. It also
provides the opportunity to rethink what sustainable society means in Japan.
The third actor I mentioned in my introduction is Japan’s unique industry and humancapital. There is a paradox here. Although Japanese firms are leaders in green technologies,
wind, solar, biomass and geothermal altogether currently only account for only 2.6% of
the electricity production. I have had the opportunity to visit Japanese renewable energy
industrial facilities, and I know that you can do much more.
Japan is amongst the world leaders in the renewable technology particularly solar
photovoltaics, lithium-ion batteries on the critical issue of storage, and on electronics. Itsupplies the world with cutting-edge technologies. Given its technological resources, thereis immense potential for Japan to redevelop the areas devastated by the earthquake and thetsunami. Japan’s R&D efforts in energy, could increasingly continue to target deploymentof the best available advancements in infrastructure, renewable energy, energy efficiency andsmart grids.
The initiative to regenerate Japan and build a sustainable society through reconstruction
has seized the imagination of people all over the world and can position Japan as a leader
globally in the search for sustainable solutions. Japan’s impressive research and development
investment together with its deep industrial capacity must be oriented to this challenge. We
can bring the best new ideas from around the world to support this effort. We have gained
great experience with architecture and design of buildings, transportation infrastructure,
new materials, smart grids, energy storage and so on. What is needed is the will to bring thisknowledge together with the unique social structure of Japan to develop a new vision forthe future.
Investment in a sustainable society would not only provide an important stimulus to the| 29economy, but would also set a positive example to the world on what is possible for a clean
energy future. IRENA would be delighted to support Japan in this endeavour.
I was informed about on-going discussions to build innovative eco-model cities using
renewable energy sources in the Tohoku area. This is an opportunity to change the way wethink about energy and urban planning, paving the way for replication to the rest of Japanand even beyond to other countries. IRENA hopes to share lessons learned from design
and technology in post-disaster reconstruction projects such as the pilot eco-model cities tobenefit people all over the world.
Finally, I would like to reiterate IRENA’s deep sense of solidarity with Japan today. I
know that your great country can overcome the effects of the disaster and I look forward
to working together with you for the brighter future that renewable energy can bring. I
personally visited Japan a few weeks before the disaster struck. I consider myself a friendof Japan, and I was proud of the way the Japanese people responded with their traditional
patience, their resilience and their determination. These are real qualities and ones that canposition Japan to develop a new prosperous and sustainable path to the future and act as
an example to the rest of the world. I have no doubt that you can do it, and we are here tosupport you in that effort.

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