Japanese Trading Firm Itochu Corp. To Supply Wind Power To US Big Tech Firms

Itochu Corp, a Japanese trading firm, announced on Wednesday that it has agreed to supply wind-generated power to Meta Platforms in the United States and solar energy to Amazon in Japan.

Itochu would provide wind-generated power to Meta from the Texas-based Prairie Switch Wind project, which is expected to have a capacity of 160 megawatts when it is completed at the end of this year and in which Itochu has agreed to invest.

Separately, Itochu announced an agreement with Amazon to build 700 solar power sites in Japan to supply the e-commerce giant with renewable energy by next year.

Itochu Corporation is a Japanese multinational corporation with headquarters in Umeda, Kita-ku, Osaka, and Aoyama, Minato, Tokyo.

It is one of Japan's largest sogo shoshas (general trading companies). It stands out among Japanese trading companies not because it is descended from a historical zaibatsu family, but because of the strength of its textile business and its successful business operations in China. Textiles, metals/minerals, food, machinery, energy/chemicals, general products/real estate, and ICT/financial business are among its seven major operational divisions. With annual trading revenue of US$100 billion, Itochu was ranked 72nd on the 2020 list of Fortune Global 500 companies.