Japan has given the go-ahead to 85,550 megawatts of clean-energy projects since the introduction of an incentive program in July 2012, with solar comprising the vast bulk of the new capacity.
Of the approvals, 23,650 megawatts, or about 28 percent, had gone online as of the end of September, according to a document provided by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. That is more than equal to the 20,600 megawatts of clean energy capacity Japan had before the program began.
The ministry has approved 79,760 megawatts of solar projects, with about 29 percent of that capacity already generating power, according to the ministry, which hosted a task force meeting on Tuesday to discuss the tariffs for clean-energy producers beginning on April 1.
Biomass and wind power followed solar in terms of the approved capacity with 2,680 megawatts and 2,330 megawatts, respectively.
The ministry has approved 710 megawatts of small hydro power, while approved geothermal capacity came in at 70 megawatts, according to the ministry document.
The share of clean energy — excluding hydro power — in the nation's total power production rose to 3.2 percent in the year ended March 2015, compared with 1.4 percent three years earlier, the ministry document showed.
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