Japan Scores Hole in One with Solar-Panelled Golf Course

A Japanese electronics manufacturer have had the novel idea of turning Japan’s many disused golf courses into sources of renewable energy by installing gigantic solar panels on their surfaces. Kyocera recently announced plans to convert the seldom-used golf course in Kyoto prefecture into a 23MW solar energy field.

The project is already underway and completion is expected in 2017, when the eco-friendly Links will be capable of powering as many as 8,100 Japanese homes.

Turning Away from Nuclear

Since the Fukushima disaster in 2011, the Japanese attitude towards nuclear power has understandably changed dramatically. Up until that fateful accident, the country had pinned its hopes on weening itself off fossil fuels and meeting renewable energy targets through the medium of nuclear power, which it hoped would provide as much as 40% of the country’s power by 2017.

However, the disastrous events of March 2^nd put the reactors out of use and radicalised Japanese opinion on the subject. Although fortunately no fatalities were recorded as a direct result of the blast, 100,000 homes were evacuated and official figures show that more than 1,000 people have died since as an indirect result of the evacuation.

The effect of nuclear is still being felt today, as just last year an analysis of isotope ratios in the affected soils around Fukushima was called for. It seems as though Japan will never regain its trust in the volatile but potentially incredibly powerful energy source.

Picking up Tips from Scotland?

As a result of the disuse of one of their major power sources in the Fukushima reactors, Japan is now forced to import 84% of its energy from overseas. Clearly, an alternative power source is needed, not just for immediate use but also for the long-term.

Recently, the Consul General of Japan Mr Hajime Kitaoka visited the western isles of Scotland to investigate that country's proficiency with wind and wave power. Perhaps while the Consul was there he had a quick 18 holes with his opposite number on one of Scotland’s world-renowned courses and came up with an ingenious idea.

Joking aside, the brainchild of Kyocera looks to hold real potential for the future of Japanese energy production. After the completion of this current project in Kyoto, Kyocera have already announced grand plans to aim for the stars of renewable energy by building an even bigger complex in Kagoshima. The future facility will contain a 92MW solar panel in the disused golf course in Kagoshima, able to power as many as 30,000 households.

With the sport having fallen out of favour after a peak in popularity during the 1980s, it looks like the Japanese electronics giant have come up with a clever method of reusing the land. How did they get the idea? Perhaps a little birdie told them (sorry).