Japan approves 12.2 GW in new solar

But only 0.6 GW are actually being produced.

The Ministry of Economy, Industry and Trade said the 12.2 GW in February compares to the 5.3 GW of solar installed at the end of 2011. Adjusting for the larger population of Japan, this compares to Germany’s approved installations over the last couple of years.

The Ministry noted the need much for more time from starting a project to getting it to the approval stage. The new solar capacity is spread rather evenly across Japan.

The biggest segment is located in Hokkaido with about 1.13 GW. Of this total, 0.97 GW came from projects with over 1 MW capacity.