1 INTRODUCTION
13
authorizations given by the NRA, and Abe’s personal pro-nuclear position, were often assumed to mean that the Abe administration was hostile
toward renewables and was returning to the pre-3–11 goal of nuclear
expansion. This chapter asks whether this is an accurate assessment of
the Abe administration’s energy policy. It finds that the answer is no.
Rather, the Abe administration merely slowed down the phase out of
nuclear power, essentially applying the long-standing Japanese “convoy”
concept from economic policy, while continuing its predecessors’ policies
of promoting renewable energy through electricity market liberalization,
promotion of storage capacity for renewables, unbundling of grid ownership from generation, and even the promotion of a hydrogen economy,
which facilitates the further adoption of renewable energy.
In Chapter 6, Yuki Takebuta provides an account of the opportunities
Japan’s deregulation of its electricity market in April 2016 have created
for new start-up entrants who are endeavoring to offer consumers the
choice of buying only or mostly renewable energy, and thereby avoid
buying energy produced with fossil fuel or nuclear power. She does so
by introducing the experiences and strategy of one such company: Minna
Denryoku, which has engaged in several innovative strategies to show the
“face of electricity” on the other side of the socket to consumers.
Chapter 7 by Robert Uriu examines the Japanese government’s unexpected announcement in 2014 of plans to realize a “Hydrogen Society”
by 2050, making Japan the first major country to announce a national
hydrogen strategy. At the heart of this strategy is the widespread use of
hydrogen fuel cells as an important energy storage medium that allows for
the large-scale expansion of renewable energy, as well as helping to decarbonize transportation and residential sectors. While business-government
efforts in Japan on hydrogen fuel cells began in the early 1990s, the 3–
11 crisis and the subsequent promotion of renewables has propelled this
approach to the forefront. Nevertheless, it remains unclear when Japan
can overcome the remaining technological and market obstacles.
Part II of this book examines four countries in East Asia. In Chapter 8,
So Young Kim and Inkyoung Sun tackle the puzzling case of South Korea,
which boasts global-scale investment in research and development for
renewable energy, yet has one of the lowest levels of renewable energy
adoption. They explore the political, economic, and technological dimensions underlying this puzzle, and pay close attention to political cleavages
shaping renewable energy policy in South Korea. They also consider
13
authorizations given by the NRA, and Abe’s personal pro-nuclear position, were often assumed to mean that the Abe administration was hostile
toward renewables and was returning to the pre-3–11 goal of nuclear
expansion. This chapter asks whether this is an accurate assessment of
the Abe administration’s energy policy. It finds that the answer is no.
Rather, the Abe administration merely slowed down the phase out of
nuclear power, essentially applying the long-standing Japanese “convoy”
concept from economic policy, while continuing its predecessors’ policies
of promoting renewable energy through electricity market liberalization,
promotion of storage capacity for renewables, unbundling of grid ownership from generation, and even the promotion of a hydrogen economy,
which facilitates the further adoption of renewable energy.
In Chapter 6, Yuki Takebuta provides an account of the opportunities
Japan’s deregulation of its electricity market in April 2016 have created
for new start-up entrants who are endeavoring to offer consumers the
choice of buying only or mostly renewable energy, and thereby avoid
buying energy produced with fossil fuel or nuclear power. She does so
by introducing the experiences and strategy of one such company: Minna
Denryoku, which has engaged in several innovative strategies to show the
“face of electricity” on the other side of the socket to consumers.
Chapter 7 by Robert Uriu examines the Japanese government’s unexpected announcement in 2014 of plans to realize a “Hydrogen Society”
by 2050, making Japan the first major country to announce a national
hydrogen strategy. At the heart of this strategy is the widespread use of
hydrogen fuel cells as an important energy storage medium that allows for
the large-scale expansion of renewable energy, as well as helping to decarbonize transportation and residential sectors. While business-government
efforts in Japan on hydrogen fuel cells began in the early 1990s, the 3–
11 crisis and the subsequent promotion of renewables has propelled this
approach to the forefront. Nevertheless, it remains unclear when Japan
can overcome the remaining technological and market obstacles.
Part II of this book examines four countries in East Asia. In Chapter 8,
So Young Kim and Inkyoung Sun tackle the puzzling case of South Korea,
which boasts global-scale investment in research and development for
renewable energy, yet has one of the lowest levels of renewable energy
adoption. They explore the political, economic, and technological dimensions underlying this puzzle, and pay close attention to political cleavages
shaping renewable energy policy in South Korea. They also consider