On June 23, 2008, Sakai City, Kansai Electric Power Co., Inc. (Kansai Electric), and Sharp Corporation announced an agreement to cooperate on the Sakai City Waterfront Mega Solar Power Generation Plan in Osaka Prefecture, Japan.

Under the plan, mega solar power generation is scheduled for the following two locations.
(1) Sakai No. 7-3 District Solar Power Generation Plant (tentative name)
(2) Sakai Manufacturing Complex Solar Power Generation Facilities (tentative name)

The first plant will be built by Kansai Electric. As for the second, Sharp and Kansai Electric will install solar power generation facilities on Sharp’s and other companies’ buildings in the complex, thus creating an in-complex source of power.

Sharp is already operating an approx. 5-MW (5,000 kW) solar power generation system at its Kameyama Plant. By installing an even bigger system, the manufacturing complex in Sakai will be the ultimate environmentally advanced production base.

With this agreement to jointly build solar power facilities, the three parties are working towards the realization of a low-carbon metropolis, with Kansai Electric and Sharp participating in the organizational structure that Sakai City has set up to run its low-carbon initiative.