Vector Renewables opened its Japan office in 2013, when the renewable energy sector had few specialists for the work ahead. Today, its team includes over 30 Japanese and international professionals, with engineers and financial experts working alongside the developers and lenders behind the country’s projects.

Spanish companies were active during the sector’s early years in Japan. Spain was among the few countries with experience installing solar and wind systems, and their work strengthened business and technical cooperation between the two countries. Some remain represented on the Energy Committee of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Japan, which Vector Renewables leads. Several Spanish professionals continue to hold positions across the industry.

Vector Renewables hired local staff and stayed as Japan’s renewables market grew. Its office remains a reference point for the sector 13 years after opening, with services spanning solar, wind and battery projects. Its team has provided technical due diligence, owner’s engineering and asset management services for over 15 gigawatts of solar photovoltaic capacity and 1.4 gigawatts of wind capacity nationwide. Those assignments have involved major Japanese banks and renewable energy developers. Renewable Japan, an established developer, has worked with Vector Renewables on projects in both Japan and Spain.

From renewable generation to storage

Battery storage presents another challenge for the firm’s Japanese team. Japan’s solar and wind facilities sometimes produce more electricity than the grid can use immediately. Batteries store the surplus and release it when it is needed, even after the sun sets or the wind eases. Storage barely existed as a commercial business a few years ago, yet its role has grown alongside Japan’s renewable capacity.

Vector Renewables entered the storage business early and has advised on nearly 2 gigawatts of standalone battery projects since 2023. The assignments range from early feasibility studies to technical due diligence across entire portfolios, spanning sites from Hokkaido to Kyushu. In 2024, it took its first asset management mandate for an operating 240-megawatt standalone battery project in Tohoku, extending its role from advice into ongoing operations. Unlike feasibility and due diligence studies, the Tohoku mandate involves an operating project and continuing responsibility for its management.

The company’s earlier work covered small rooftop solar installations, ground-mounted projects and utility-scale portfolios exceeding 300 megawatts. It also conducted technical due diligence on more than 4 gigawatts of onshore wind projects, including several large, multiproject portfolios still in development. Experience across those technologies has informed its work on batteries as investment in storage has accelerated. The battery work also calls for knowledge of local rules, a point Zazo sees as central to the storage sector’s development.

“What we’re seeing with storage today looks a lot like what happened with solar a decade ago,” said Jorge Zazo, country manager of Vector Renewables Japan. “An asset class moves from niche to mainstream, and suddenly everyone needs a partner who understands both the technology and the local rules.”

Global reach, local execution

Vector Renewables marks 20 years since its incorporation in Spain this year. Its eight offices span Spain, Italy, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Mexico, Japan, Chile and the Philippines, while its services reach over 40 countries. The group has advised on more than 3,000 renewable energy projects and employs over 200 professionals of 20 nationalities. Its in-house asset management platform, NUO, provides standardized, scalable reporting across technologies and portfolios of different sizes and locations.

The office that opened with a handful of people has become an independent advisory team spanning solar, wind and batteries. Its storage work now addresses the question raised by Japan’s renewable capacity: how to save electricity until the grid is ready for it.