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Sharp solar panels to be used in two Japanese mega plants

Posted December 30, 2008 11:16 AM

From Engadget:

Sharp has certainly been an integral part of these solar installations before, but the latest endeavor by the city of Sakai and the Kansai Electric Power Company isn't anything to sneeze at. The initiative will see a pair of "mega solar plants" constructed, one of which will crank out around 10,000 kW while the other outputs 18,000 kW. Once the plants go online in 2011, expectations are that CO2 emissions will decrease on the order of 10,000 tons per year. Of course, a staggering ¥5.0 billion ($46.5 million) will be coughed up in order to make it happen, but you can bet Mother Earth will certainly see it as money well spent.

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Guru
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#1

Re: Sharp solar panels to be used in two Japanese mega plants

12/30/2008 12:06 PM

I hope nobody 'accidentally' shatters it

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bondy111
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#2

Re: Sharp solar panels to be used in two Japanese mega plants

12/31/2008 11:17 PM

Solar and wind energy are green after the equipment is manufactured. During mining and manufacturing the facilities may not be "green", or are they ?

Do they use "green power" to make the solar panels and wind turbines ? Could they afford to use "green power" to make the hardware and construction of the sites ?

Hydro power is very green after it is operating, but requires manufacturing and construction to get to hydro power production.

So are we doing a slight of hand to say "green power" ?

This upfront cost I haven't seen anyone bring it up yet, the trade-off between smokestack energy to manufacture and install to the "green energy" produced.

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#3
In reply to #2

Re: Sharp solar panels to be used in two Japanese mega plants

01/20/2009 9:57 AM

They could build another coal plant instead. I wonder what the trade off on that would be?

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Guru
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#4
In reply to #3

Re: Sharp solar panels to be used in two Japanese mega plants

01/20/2009 12:36 PM

Go nuclear, as long as they don't let a un-trained 5 yr old to the controls, they'll be able to control the reaction. Coal is such a dirty energy source...

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bondy111
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#5
In reply to #4

Re: Sharp solar panels to be used in two Japanese mega plants

01/20/2009 1:17 PM

I was being sarcastic...I basically don't like the arguement that if it takes energy to do it we shouldn't. Very lazy chain of reasoning.

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