ESR in tie-up to pilot green energy certificate system in Japan

HONG KONG-LISTED real estate asset manager ESR Group, formerly known as ESR Cayman, has partnered Japan’s Enerbank to participate in the country’s green energy certificate system.

In a press statement on Friday (Jul 8), ESR said the system will certify the environmental value of ESR’s self-generated solar energy by the Japan Quality Assurance Organisation, coupled with green energy certificates issued by national licence-holding issuer Enerbank.

This will allow ESR’s self-generated solar energy from its logistics facilities to be recognised as a renewable power energy source that is fed into the power grid in Japan.

According to the group, the partnership provides an alternative option for companies and communities in the country to validate their renewable energy contribution through Enerbank-issued green energy certificates. 

It will also enable ESR to support and measure its partners and customers in their emission reduction efforts, while expanding the wider application of green energy within the group’s ecosystem.

Fukuhara Kogyo is among the first of ESR’s business partners to receive a green energy certificate issued by Enerbank for 280 megawatt hours (MWh) of solar energy powered by ESR Fujiidera Distribution Centre.

ESR co-founder and co-chief executive Stuart Gibson said the group aims to further increase solar power generation in all operating markets and work towards a 50 per cent increase in the group’s rooftop solar power installed capacity by 2025.

“To date, our portfolio across the enlarged group has more than 100 MW of solar power capacity and we intend to grow that considerably in Japan going forward,” added Gibson.

The acquisition of ARA Asset Management by ESR was completed in January this year, making ESR an indirect majority controlling shareholder of Logos Group, which indirectly manages real estate investment trusts (Reits) in markets including Japan.

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This resulted in a merged Reit entity known as ESR-Logos Reit . It began trading on the Singapore Exchange under ESR Reit’s former stock code “J91U” on May 5.