Kyoto Expands Subsidy Program for Residential Photovoltaic Systems

The city of Kyoto's program for subsidizing the installation of residential photovoltaic systems has been growing in use and popularity since being established in 2003. It extended the scope of the program to condominiums in fiscal 2006 and now to rental apartments in 2007 (all years mentioned here are fiscal years). The number of subsidized systems has increased gradually, starting with 155 in 2004, 172 in 2005, and 224 in 2006. In the program's fifth year in 2007, 724 residences have received subsidies so far.

The amount of subsidy depends on the type of housing and maximum output of the installed system, as follows: 45,000 yen (U.S.$388) per kilowatt for a single-family house or rental apartment up to a limit of 180,000 yen ($1,552), and 56,000 yen ($483) per kilowatt for a condominium up to a limit of 1,120,000 yen ($9,655). No subsidy was given to any condominiums in fiscal 2006, while one has already been approved in 2007.

The city estimates the introduction of a residential photovoltaic system can reduce the annual carbon dioxide emissions of a family by 1.3 tons. Although installing a 3.3-kilowatt type system on an average house costs about 2,500,000 yen ($21,552) as the initial investment, the power generated by the system can help an average family save about 73,000 yen ($629) on annual electricity costs of 100,000 yen ($862).

http://www.city.kyoto.jp/koho/eng/index.html

Posted: 2008/01/05 03:00:57 PM
Japanese version