Japanese trading house Itochu [8001:JP] has started developing large-scale solar power plants in the US, as reported by Nikkei Asia on February 5. Itochu will take on the work of selecting a site, designing and constructing the facility, and selling the completed property to a buyer that will operate the project. In its first series of developments, the Japanese company has received approvals from state governments to acquire three sites in Illinois and Arkansas for the construction of solar plants capable of generating 330,000 kilowatts (kW) of electricity. The clean electricity produced from these projects will be sold to Meta [META:US], while the properties will be sold to an investment firm led by the founding family of the Lego Group.

The recent investments are part of Itochu’s broader plan announced last July to spend USD2bn in expanding its renewable energy generation assets in the US and Canada. Before the announcement, the company had developed and invested in more than 30 power plants in the US, with 20 solar assets under construction. Itochu aims to capitalize on the growing solar power demand in the US, particularly benefiting from the lucrative tax credits provided to decarbonization projects under the Inflation Reduction Act. In 2023, the US renewable energy capacity additions reached an estimated 507 gigawatts (GW), representing a nearly 50% increase from 2022. In addition, the rising demand for clean electricity is also driven by large enterprises seeking to decarbonize their operations.

Sources:

https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Environment/Climate-Change/Japan-s-Itochu-expands-U.S.-solar-business-with-deeper-role-in-projects

Japanese corporation Itochu to invest US$2 billion in renewables in North America