(Adds stimulus promise in paragraph 2)
By Kiyoshi Takenaka and Sakura Murakami
TOKYO, Sept 24 (Reuters) - Renewable energy companies are betting that the leading contender in the race to become Japan's next prime minister, Taro Kono, will unleash changes allowing more market access and a fairer playing field after years of neglect.
The 58-year-old has long championed more renewable supplies in Japan's roughly $150 billion electricity sector, the world's biggest national power market outside China, and has promised https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/japan-pm-contender-kono-wants-renewable-energy-5g-be-focus-stimulus-package-2021-09-16 an economic stimulus package focused on renewables if he wins.
Investors have been buying renewable energy shares hoping the popular Kono wins the Sept. 29 vote for the Liberal Democratic Party's (LDP) next leader and -- by virtue of its majority in the parliament -- becomes Japan's next premier.
Japan's energy mix is already undergoing change, with renewables on the rise, replacing fossil fuels which shored up power following the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011.
Kono, a former defence minister and scion of a political dynasty, is currently in charge of administrative reform and has clashed with the powerful industry ministry (METI), which like the steel federation, has supported a revival of the moribund nuclear sector.
"Kono has eagerly taken on deregulation over the past year, and a lot has changed. Japan's energy shift will advance further if Kono is elected," said Mika Ohbayashi, a director at Renewable Energy Institute founded by SoftBank Group Corp. Chief Executive Masayoshi Son.
Renewable energy has also received a boost from outgoing Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga's pledge last year to align Japan with Europe and declare a 2050 carbon neutrality target.
"The attitudes of officials at METI have drastically changed. Their attitudes toward renewable energy startups used to be rather cold, but they can't afford to continue that stance," said Koki Yoshino, executive officer at Japan Renewable Energy, which operates nearly 50 wind and solar power projects.
In 2018 a panel convened by Kono, who was then foreign minister, caused controversy by wading into the energy debate, normally METI's preserve, supporting a call to get rid of nuclear power and coal while dramatically increasing renewables.
Last year, Kono set up a taskforce to take down regulatory hurdles hindering Japan's shift to renewables.
The world's third-largest economy and fifth-biggest carbon emitter is heavily reliant on imported fossil fuels 10 years after the Fukushima catastrophe almost killed off its nuclear sector, the source of a third of Japan's electricity before 2011.