White paper calls for promotion of renewable energy

Japan needs to promote the use of renewable energy including wind and solar power to secure a stable energy supply amid a rise in global energy demand due to rapid growth in China and other emerging economies, a government white paper said Tuesday.

In the fiscal 2009 energy white paper approved at a Cabinet meeting, the government said Japan's ratio of renewable energy to overall energy supply is comparable to the ratios for Germany and Spain, which are promoting the use of renewable energy.

The renewable energy ratio stood at 6 percent in 2007, compared with 9 percent for Germany and 7 percent for Spain, according to the white paper.

To ensure the spread of renewable energy, however, Japan should fully introduce feed-in tariffs -- a premium rate paid for renewable energy-generated electricity and fed back into the electricity grid -- and ease conditions for power generation facilities, the annual report said.

It also pointed out the need to establish the network of the next-generation smart grid based on information technology, to make energy use more effective.

The white paper gave Japan a score of 1.8 in evaluating its energy self-sufficiency, including nuclear power generation, on a scale of 1 to 10.

Japan should secure rights to develop natural resources abroad and steadily stockpile oil, the paper said.