Sharp Corp. will spend five billion yen (48 million dollars) on boosting its output from the current 315 megawatts at Katsuragi Plant in Nara, western Japan, to 400 megawatts in January.

The company claims its solar cell production level is the world's highest for the fourth consecutive year in 2004.

Sharp said in a statement it "intends to further expand its solar cell production capacity" but a spokesman said there were no specific plans at the moment.

The introduction of renewable energy continues to grow, thanks partly to the Kyoto Protocol, which calls for tighter emissions control to prevent global warming.

The global amount of electrical energy produced annually from solar cells in the year to March 2005 is estimated at 900 megawatts and is expected to grow beyond 1.1 gigawatts in the following year, according to Sharp.

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