Japan’s Yamagata, Akita Shinkansen Trains to be 20％ Solar Powered; JR East, Tohoku Electric Power to Work Together to Provide Energy

The Yomiuri Shimbun

7:00 JST, January 22, 2025

Yamagata and Akita Shinkansen bullet trains will be 20% solar powered starting in April, according to East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) and Tohoku Electric Power Co.

This marks the first attempt for JR East to introduce a power supply for its Shinkansen bullet trains from a renewable energy source. The plan will also contribute to the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions.

Solar power plants in Akita and Aomori prefectures, which are exclusively for JR East, will transmit electricity via Tohoku Electric Power’s distribution networks, according to the two companies.

The solar-generated electricity will be used for running a section of the Yamagata Shinkansen line between Fukushima and Shinjo stations and a section of the Akita Shinkansen line between Morioka and Akita stations.

The total volume of electricity to be provided under the plan is estimated to be about 35 million kilowatt-hours annually. The figure is equivalent to the electric energy consumption of about 11,200 typical households.

The amount is also equivalent to about 2% of JR East’s total electric power supply to its Shinkansen bullet train operations.

The two companies predict that CO2 emissions generated from the operation of the two sections can be cut annually by about 16,500 tons, or about 20%.

JR East aims for net zero of CO2 emissions in fiscal 2050 by balancing them with absorption and collection of CO2. “The plan can be the first step toward the goal,” said an official.