Japan is betting $1.5bn on a breakthrough in next-generation ultra-thin, light and bendy solar panels, subsidising the commercialisation of a technology that analysts say could disrupt China’s dominance of renewable energy and reduce Tokyo’s dependence on fossil fuels.
Perovskite cells are 20 times thinner than regular solar panels and could be plastered over stadiums, airports and office buildings, enabling mass adoption of solar in a mountainous country that lacks the open space needed for more conventional solar farms.
Officials in Tokyo have set an ambitious goal of installing enough cells to generate energy equivalent to 20 nuclear power plants by 2040, positioning the technology as essential for Japan to achieve its target for up to 50 per cent of its electricity to come from renewables.