OREANDA-NEWS. Osaka Shinkin Bank, Jupiter Telecommunications Co., Ltd., Sumitomo Corporation, Sumitomo Warehouse Co., Ltd., Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd., Daihen Corporation, Hitachi Zosen Corporation, Rengo Co., Ltd., and NTT Facilities, Inc. have completed construction work for an environmental contribution project centered around a mega-solar power generation plant known as the "Osaka Hikari-no-Mori Project" (hereinafter, "the Project") which began in November 2012, and have at last launched the Project.

On Wednesday, November 13, representatives of these companies and of the Osaka municipal government will gather in Osaka for a "project oath-taking ceremony" to commemorate the kick-off for the local contribution, environmental education and research activities planned as part of the Project.

The "Osaka Hikari-no-Mori Project" is a corporate participation-based environmental contribution project initiated to make effective use of the Hokko Landfill Site on Yumeshima in Osaka's Konohana-ku through public-private collaboration. Adoption of an SGS (Solar-power Group Share) scheme enabled the participation of numerous companies who support the Project's concept, and the Project is expected to expand as a community-wide effort. Seven companies?Jupiter Telecommunications Co., Ltd., Sumitomo Corporation, Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd., Daihen Corporation, Hitachi Zosen Corporation, Rengo Co., Ltd., and NTT Facilities, Inc.?were involved at the outset of planning, and were later joined by Sumitomo Warehouse Co., Ltd. and Osaka Shinkin Bank to make this a nine-company endeavor.

The Hokko Landfill Site serving as the installation location for the mega-solar plant is a landfill disposal site for incinerated ash from general and other waste and, as such, long-term ordinary land use will be restricted even after completion of the landfill. The Project was founded on the concept of multiple companies coming together to create a "Hikari-no-Mori" (Forest of Light), similar to the way individuals would plant one tree each to create a forest. , The part of the Hokko area which is completed will be effectively utilized as the large-scale megasolar project site which will contribute to the area's environmental improvement. The renewable electricity generated, eligible for the feed-in-tariff (FIT) will support the day-to-day lives and economic activities of the local community via Kansai Electric Power Co., Inc.

Through the "Osaka Hikari-no-Mori Project," the participating companies seek to help conserve the global environment, promote renewable energy generation in urban areas, and contribute to environmental education that passes on the principles of sustainable communities to the next generation.