Japanese Govt. To Give Incentive Points To Households To Save Power In Winter
The Japanese government will give additional incentive points to households and businesses to encourage them to save electricity this winter.
Households can already get incentive points from the government worth 2,000 yen, or about 14 dollars if they register with power retailers' energy-saving programs. Businesses can get about 1,400-dollars-worth. The points can be used for shopping and other purposes.
The government announced on Tuesday that between January and March 2023 it will give more monthly points to households and businesses that have cut power consumption by more than three percent from the same month a year ago.
Households will be awarded 1,000 yen, or about 7 dollars-worth of points each month. Businesses will get about 140 dollars-worth.
The points will be added to those power retailers award in their energy-saving programs.
Separately, the government also plans to reward those who save energy when it issues advisories or warnings for possible power-shortages. The government will give out points worth up to 40 yen, or 27 cents, per kilowatt hour depending on the power saved.
So far, 287 power retailers have applied for the new scheme. They cover more than 95 percent of power sold in Japan.
The industry ministry plans to call for more households and businesses to take part in the program to reduce power consumption.