Tokyo Gas issues green bond to fund acquisition of 694 MW of PV

Tokyo Gas has issued a JPY 10 billion ($95.9 million) green bond to finance unspecified projects and support the acquisition of 694 MW of PV capacity in Japan and the United States.

Via its Prominent Power unit, Japan’s largest gas company plans to acquire a 63.2 MW solar plant in Annaka, in Japan’s Gunma prefecture, that was built under Japan’s old feed-in tariff scheme. It also wants to buy the 631 MW (DC) Aktina solar project in Wharton county, Texas. Construction on this project will start later this quarter, with completion scheduled for mid-2021. Tokyo Gas will issue the 10-year bond in December.

Tokyo Gas launched a solar development venture in February 2017. A year later, it strengthened its commitment to renewable energy through two deals. The first deal was the acquisition of a 4.8 MW solar plant in Kyoto prefecture, which started commercial operations in August 2015. The second deal was the creation of joint venture with Exergy Power Systems, a University of Tokyo spinoff that develops storage systems based on hydrogen cell tech.

In April 2019, Tokyo Gas acquired a 50% stake in Heolios EnTG, the Mexican renewable energy unit of French utility Engie. Then deal gave Tokyo Gas a stake in the 254 MWp Calpulalpan solar plant and the Villa Ahumada (200 MWp), Trompezon (159 MWp) and Abril (134 MWp) arrays.