KYOTO, Japan--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Kyocera Corporation (NYSE:KYO)(TOKYO:6971) today announced that its Hokkaido Kitami Plant has received Japan’s 2017 Environment Minister’s Award for Global Warming Prevention Activity, in the “implementation of countermeasures / dissemination” category.

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525kW solar power generating system at the Hokkaido Kitami Plant (Photo: Business Wire)

This represents a record eighth consecutive year that Kyocera has received the award, following many other environment-related honors worldwide — including Mexico’s highest award for environmental excellence for two consecutive years, and the City of San Diego’s annual recycling award for 17 consecutive years.

Established in 1998 by Japan’s Ministry of the Environment, this award is presented every December in observance of Global Warming Prevention Month to individuals and groups that have shown remarkable achievements in the prevention of climate change.

Environmental Programs

1. Solar energy

Rooftop and ground-mounted solar power systems at Kyocera’s Hokkaido Kitami Plant provide a combined 640 kilowatts of generating capacity. The systems generate approximately 787,154 kilowatt hours (kWh) per year, enough electricity to power approximately 240 typical households*¹ ― while offsetting about 530 tons of CO₂ emissions annually.

2. Energy conservation measures

The Plant is promoting energy efficiency through the implementation of new equipment such as modular chillers and LED lights, as well as reusing the exhaust heat from its production equipment such as furnaces or cooling chillers for building/office heating. In addition, the Plant installed heat-exchange equipment to recover the waste heat from hot water used to clean products. As a result of these conservation activities, the Plant has achieved annual energy reductions of about 710 tons of CO₂ emission. Moreover, employees receive ongoing environmental instruction, including how to conserve energy during high-consumption summer and winter months, and how to segregate waste. All education efforts aim to increase employees’ environmental awareness and help prevent global warming.

3. Community-based environmental activities

Specially trained Kyocera employees visit local primary schools and provide hands-on “Eco-Lessons” for environmental preservation and energy conservation. In 2017, a total of 441 students took part at eight primary schools in Japan. Other community activities include an eco-event at the Hokkaido Kitami Plant’s summer festival and neighborhood clean-up activities for employees.

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About KYOCERA

Kyocera Corporation (NYSE:KYO; TOKYO:6971; http://global.kyocera.com/), the parent and global headquarters of the Kyocera Group, was founded in 1959 as a producer of fine ceramics (also known as “advanced ceramics”). By combining these engineered materials with metals and integrating them with other technologies, Kyocera has become a leading supplier of industrial and automotive components, electronic devices, semiconductor packages, solar power generating systems, printers, copiers, and mobile phones. During the year ended March 31, 2017, the company’s consolidated net sales totaled 1.42 trillion yen (approx. USD12.7 billion). Kyocera appears on the “Top 100 Global Innovators” list by Clarivate Analytics and is ranked #522 on Forbes magazine’s 2017 “Global 2000” list of the world’s largest publicly traded companies.

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