SHINSHIRO-MINAMI, Japan — Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. (YRC) has added solar-generated power to the energy used in tire production at its Shinshiro-Minami plant.
The power is being generated by banks of solar panels installed on the roof of the 59-year-old plant in Japan's Aichi Prefecture and coincides with the start of production of Yokohama's Advan Sport EV ultra-high-performance tire line
The solar power-generated electricity complements renewable energy-generated electricity that Yokohama began using at the plant in April.
The new solar power-generation system has an output of about 1.1 megawatts and is projected to generate about 1,469 megawatt/hours per year while reducing CO2 emissions by about 599 metric tons per year. The system was subsidized by the Japanese Ministry of the Environment's FY2021 Subsidy for CO2 Emission Control Measures.
As part of its plan to achieve carbon neutrality in its manufacturing operations by 2050, YRC plans to convert the Shinshiro-Minami plant, its primary plant for high-performance tires for passenger cars, into a carbon-neutral model plant with zero CO2 emissions by 2030 and then use the knowledge gained by this conversion at other plants, both in Japan and globally, to help them achive carbon neutrality by 2050.
The renewable-energy electricity used at the Shinshiro-Minami plant is considered to be derived 100% from renewable energy sources and deemed to generate zero CO2 emissions, YRC said, as its power provider Chubu Electric Power Miraiz Co. Inc. has procured FIT non-fossil fuel certificates with tracking information and non-FIT non-fossil fuel certificates with renewable energy attributes for the electricity being provided to the plant.
The Shinshiro-Minami Plant's shift to renewable-energy electricity is expected to reduce the plant's annual CO2 emissions by about 570 tons.
In addition to the use of solar and renewable-energy electricity at the plant, YRC has converted the heat source for its boilers to natural gas.
