Investment Guidelines

Earnings Stability

Despite volatile power output and high production costs, as well as the challenges of efficient power production, Ichigo Green considers solar power plants to be an asset class that generates stable cash flow because of the relatively simple upkeep of facilities, the lack of the need for new inputs such as raw materials, and the stability of income offered by guaranteed long-term FIT contracts.

Investment Criteria to Ensure Earnings Stability	Solar power plants must have been in operation for at least one year Each plant, or its leaseholder, must have: fire insurance, earthquake insurance (in cases when the projected loss assessed by a third-party exceeds a certain threshold), insurance against loss of income, and property and casualty insurance Proper maintenance through appropriate outsourcing arrangements

Lease Fee Details

At each plant, Ichigo Green receives a base fee plus a performance-linked fee as defined in the lease agreement. The base fee is set according to the annual P85 power production forecast, provided by NEDO (New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization) from its database of hourly solar intensity, minus projected administrative and operational expenses. The performance-linked fee is set as the actual revenue from solar power sales, minus the actual administrative and operating expenses and the base fee, with negative amounts becoming zero. The lease agreement specifies that Ichigo Green will always receive the base fee regardless of actual power production.

Solar Power Plant Operation Backed by Deep Experience and Expertise

Ichigo Green will proactively invest in solar power plants developed and operated by Ichigo ECO Energy, a subsidiary of the sponsor, Ichigo, that has a strong track record and broad experience in this field. After acquisition, we will retain Ichigo ECO Energy as the operator of our solar power plants, thus fully leveraging the vast experience and expertise of Ichigo in this field.

Construction of Robust Power Plants

Ichigo ECO Energy constructs robust, long-lasting solar power plants based on geological and meteorological site-assessments performed by our in-house specialists. These include type-1 qualified architects, type-2 and type-3 qualified electric construction management engineers, and type-1 qualified electricians. We contract actual construction to reputable manufacturing companies.
As evidence of the high standards of Ichigo Green's renewable energy power plants, the Ichigo Kiryu Okuzawa ECO Power Plant (located in Gunma Prefecture with a panel output of 1.33MW) was certified by TUV Rheinland, a globally respected assessment firm headquartered in Germany, at the time of its operation launch.

String Monitoring of Solar Panels

Because solar power generation is largely dependent on weather conditions, even small malfunctions and degradation of solar panels can significantly impact operations, thus making monitoring, early detection, and immediate repair critical for solar power plant operators. So-called string monitoring is acclaimed as the most cost effective means of ensuring optimal operation and is broadly adopted across Europe, which leads the world in the field of solar-power generation.
A string monitoring system tracks power production and immediately detects failures and breakdowns of panels that could lead to significant losses. String monitoring systems are used by leading solar-plant operators in Europe because of their cost efficiency.