🥵At 41.2°C Hottest Ever, Japan Accelerates Solar, Wind & Green Innovation
Japan recorded its hottest temperature ever at 41.2°C in Hyogo Prefecture, causing heat-related hospitalizations to double from 5,309 to 10,804 cases nationwide in one week.
🎧🗣️Audio Version of this newsletter, thanks to NotebookLM
In English🇺🇲: Japan Climate Curation vol. 163 [12:03 min.]
In Japanese🇯🇵: Japan Climate Curation vol. 163 [7:11 min.]
*Editor’s note: This article was originally published on 7/31/2025 on Linkedin.
Welcome! I'm Hiroyasu Ichikawa, ichi, and this is issue 162 of the "Japan Climate Curation" newsletter📬, which has been curating hand-picked Japan-related climate news content every week since spring 2022, with over 470 subscribers [ more than 2,930 on Linedin]. You can subscribe by clicking on the Linkedin page or the form below.
I hope you find the articles below beneficial for reading (or skimming)!
Found this week's news insights valuable? Please give it a quick "like" or "share" on LinkedIn – you never know who else in your network might benefit from staying in the loop on Japan's climate scene🙂🙇
*note : "Climate Curation" a different climate newsletter in Japanese (every Saturday) is available on Linkedin / note / theLetter. It curates Japan and global climate-tech trends. I hope you like it.
【Digest of this week's topics】
Japan recorded its hottest temperature ever at 41.2°C in Hyogo Prefecture, causing heat-related hospitalizations to double from 5,309 to 10,804 cases nationwide in one week. This extreme weather is catalyzing Japan's clean energy innovation push. The country is staging a solar comeback through next-generation perovskite panels—20 times thinner than conventional panels—leveraging its position as the world's second-largest iodine producer. Japan is strengthening partnerships with India to create alternative supply chains amid China's dominance and U.S. policy reversals. Wind energy is gaining momentum through efforts to attract Denmark's Vestas for domestic production and Mitsui's acquisition of Scotland's Nigg port for floating offshore wind projects. Financial activity is increasing, with Mizuho Securities acquiring UK renewable M&A specialist Augusta & Co. Beyond energy, Japan is exploring innovative decarbonization approaches from waste paper-to-bioethanol conversion to AI-driven indoor farming, suggesting a comprehensive climate strategy.
*Disclaimer: Generative AI tools such as Claude Sonet 4 and NotebookLM have been used for summary and translation assistance. 🙂
[🇯🇵📰👀Japan Climate News Headlines]
【1】🌡️ Japan marks highest-ever temperature of 41.2°C in Hyogo [7/30 The Japan Times]
Japan recorded its highest-ever temperature of 41.2°C in Tanba, Hyogo Prefecture, surpassing the previous record of 41.1°C set in 2018 and 2020. Fukuchiyama in Kyoto reached 40.6°C and Nishiwaki in Hyogo hit 40°C. Heat-related hospital admissions surged from 5,309 to 10,804 in one week due to human-induced climate change. Tokyo led with 1,099 cases, followed by Saitama (750) and Hokkaido (690). The Meteorological Agency warns that a Pacific high-pressure system will bring extreme heat across wide areas from Saturday through Monday, urging proper air conditioning use and frequent fluid intake.
【2】☀️ Japan looks to get solar mojo back with thin, light, bendable panels [7/29 Nikkei Asia]
Japan dominated 50% of the global solar market until the early 2000s but lost leadership to China through production outsourcing and insufficient R&D. Now Japan seeks a comeback with perovskite solar panels - 20 times thinner and lighter, installable on buildings. Japan has advantage as the world's second-largest iodine producer, perovskite's main ingredient, though these panels last only 10 years versus 20+ for conventional panels with lower efficiency. The government supports the industry while China develops competing technology.
【3】🤝 Amid fossil fuel shift in U.S., hope emerges for India and Japan tie-up on solar [7/27 The Japan Times]
The International Solar Festival at Osaka Expo highlighted Japan-India solar cooperation amid global energy shifts. India surpassed Japan in 2023 to become the world's third-largest solar generator, but bilateral investment and trade remain disappointingly limited despite existing partnerships. With the US dramatically cutting renewable energy support under Trump's administration and China facing serious human rights concerns in Xinjiang's solar supply chains, Japan-India collaboration becomes increasingly strategic. The International Solar Alliance seeks to merge Japan's advanced R&D capabilities with India's entrepreneurial talent and vast market potential.
【4】🌪️ Japan aims to attract Denmark's Vestas to produce wind turbine blades [7/30 Nikkei Asia]
The Japanese government is pursuing a memorandum of understanding with Denmark's leading wind turbine manufacturer Vestas to encourage investment and blade production in Japan. Nippon Steel will also sign a separate MOU to explore using domestic steel in turbine towers. The initiative aims to expand domestic procurement of wind components as Japan seeks to develop renewable energy into a major electricity source. Currently lacking domestic wind turbine manufacturing, Japan relies on imports. The ministry sees an opportunity to attract investment as offshore wind spending slows in the US and Europe.
【5】⚓ Japan's Mitsui takes over Scottish port in boost for offshore wind sector [7/31 Financial Times]
Mitsui Corporation will acquire Scotland's Nigg port from Global Energy Group, partnering with Mitsui OSK Lines to strengthen the UK's offshore wind sector. The port serves as a crucial hub for floating offshore wind technology, supporting approximately 30 gigawatts of planned wind projects. The acquisition addresses supply chain bottlenecks, turbine shortages, and rising construction costs while supporting the UK's goal of 5GW floating offshore wind capacity by 2030. Mitsui also plans to develop the port as an ammonia fuel bunkering hub.
【6】🌱 4th Green Product Demand Committee Meeting: Interim Report on Value Chain Decarbonization [7/25 Ministry of the Environment]
The interim report focuses on addressing demand-side challenges to achieve Net-Zero by 2050. Beyond conventional Scope 1 & 2 emissions reductions, decarbonization across the entire value chain, including Scope 3, is now essential. Current obstacles for green products include higher production costs leading to higher prices, consumer confusion ("wakaranai"), low awareness of diverse environmental labels, and the effort required for research. Proposed solutions include clear information provision, economic incentives, leveraging digital platforms, strengthening supplier engagement, and localized support.
YouTube archive is available here
【7】💼 Mizuho Securities to buy UK renewables M&A advisory firm [7/26 Nikkei Asia]
Mizuho Securities will acquire UK-based renewable energy M&A adviser Augusta & Co. to expand its European footprint and diversify revenue sources. Founded in 2002, Augusta has one of the longest track records in European renewable energy M&A with annual revenue of £20 million. The deal comes as sustainability-related M&A grows 10% annually and Mizuho seeks to catch up with competitors like Nomura. Transaction expected to close in October.
【8】♻️ Japan's Eneos and Toppan aim to turn waste paper into eco-friendly fuel [7/29 Nikkei Asia]
Energy company Eneos and printing group Toppan Holdings announced a joint pilot initiative to recycle waste paper into bioethanol. Field testing will begin in early 2027, with commercialization targeted for fiscal 2030. The companies will install specialized equipment at a Nippon Paper Industries plant in Fuji, Shizuoka Prefecture, processing 1-3 metric tons of waste paper daily to produce approximately 300 liters of bioethanol. Unlike conventional biofuels derived from corn and sugar cane, waste paper offers a viable alternative that doesn't compete with food production.
【9】🍓 US indoor strawberry grower to set up Japan R&D facility [7/25 Nikkei Asia]
US indoor strawberry startup Oishii plans to invest over 5 billion yen in a 15,000 sq-meter R&D facility called "Open Innovation Center" in Hamura, Tokyo. The facility will develop indoor farming systems and varieties, targeting full operation next year. Using AI image recognition and robotic harvesting automation, the company aims to automate all processes within 5-10 years. Already secured 20 billion yen funding from Mizuho Bank and others.
【10】🌊 The growing business of seaweed [7/29 NHK World]
Seaweed is an essential part of Japanese cuisine, and recently its health and other benefits are seeing it used in a variety of ways that might be surprising.
📬That's all for this week! Thank you for reading(or skimming) 🙇. I hope you will have a wonderful week ahead!
Did you found this week's news insights valuable? Please give it a quick "like" or "share" on LinkedIn – you never know who else in your network might benefit from staying in the loop on Japan's climate scene🙂🙇
The "Climate Curation" newsletter in 🇯🇵Japanese (every Saturday) is available on Linkedin and theLetter.
Please feel free to contact me via email: hiroyasu.ichikawa [@]socialcompany.org, if you have any research/consulting needs for your business or just for a coffee chat☕.
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ichi (Hiroyasu Ichikawa)