Nippon Oil Corp. Starts Solar Power System for Individual Condominium Units

Copyright Nippon Oil Corp.

Nippon Oil Corp. installed independent solar power systems on its 36-unit company housing condominium complex in Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture, and began its operation on December 18, 2009. This type of solar power system was the first of its kind in the Tokyo metropolitan area. A power conditioner developed by the company allows each condo unit to generate and use solar power separately.

The solar power system is equipped with a power conditioner which converts direct-current electricity generated by the photovoltaic generation system into alternating current electricity. It also has a safety function that shuts down the solar power system when it detects a loss of grid power. But when trying to generate energy for individual condo units, these safety mechanisms on conventional converters interfere with each other and cause a malfunction in the power generation system. The company's newly developed power conditioner solved this problem while being the smallest type (roughly the size of a sheet of notebook paper available) for condominiums in Japan.

Although Japan has an energy buyback program, it is applied to surplus energy generated from single home photovoltaic systems, virtually excluding condominium residents. Nippon Oil's solar power system, with its new power conditioner, will allow condo residents to benefit from the buyback program. The company plans to commercialize the system and further promote solar power generation for condominiums.

Posted: 2010/03/15 06:00:15 AM