What Zek Co., Ltd. does

Zek Co., Ltd. (株式会社ゼック, branded "Zero Energy Company" / ZEC) is a Tokyo-based, privately held Type 2 Financial Instruments Business operator (Kanto Finance Bureau No. 1795) that structures and manages a portfolio of solar power investment funds for Japanese individual investors. The company develops, constructs, and operates distributed solar photovoltaic power stations across Ibaraki, Tochigi, and Miyagi prefectures, with 14 commissioned projects totaling approximately 10 MW of capacity. Each station is owned by a separate limited liability company (合同会社) — a structural choice that creates bankruptcy remoteness from the parent — and individual investors commit a minimum of 500,000 yen per unit into these fund vehicles under 20-year fixed-price power purchase agreements with retail electricity providers. ZEC handles end-to-end asset management: land sourcing, project development, construction oversight, ongoing operations and maintenance, remote monitoring, and investor relations, supported by in-house judicial scriveners who manage inheritance events for unit holders. The company holds three relevant registrations (Type 2 FIB, Investment Advisory/Agency, and Type 2 FIB Association membership), is featured in a Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry Resource Energy Agency co-investment case study, and has been covered by Nikkei Veritas and NHK Ibaraki.

The business model rests on two revenue streams: (1) electricity sales revenue flowing through each fund under 20-year FIT or PPA contracts, with proceeds net of maintenance and reserves distributed to investors at a contractual 8.0%+ annual rate across all 14 legacy funds as of September 2023, and (2) fund-management services revenue earned by ZEC as the licensed operator. GTM is direct-to-consumer through investment seminars, on-site station tours, and in-person consultation at the Hatchobori headquarters, supplemented by a company website, blog, email magazine, Facebook, and X. Historically reliant on Japan's Feed-in Tariff regime, ZEC announced a strategic pivot in March 2024 to corporate off-site PPA, anchored by a November 2023 partnership with TEPCO Energy Partner and PPIH (Mega Don Quijote) that materialized in the Ibaraki PPA 1 fund — sold out in March 2025 with operations beginning mid-2025 — marking the company's first major enterprise-PPA product and the template for its next fund generation. The customer base remains predominantly retail (800+ individuals across legacy funds), with corporate PPA offtakers representing an emerging but currently narrow second segment.

Name

Zek Co., Ltd.

Legal name

株式会社ゼック

Website

https://zecj.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Zek Co., Ltd. is a Tokyo-based licensed fund operator that structures and manages 14 solar power investment vehicles for Japanese retail investors, pooling capital to develop distributed PV stations under 20-year fixed-price power purchase agreements and pivoting toward corporate PPA offtake with retailers like PPIH/Don Quijote.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Solar Power Investment Funds

NAICS

Solar Electric Power Generation (221114), Other Financial Vehicles (52599)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Cogeneration Services & Small Power Producers (4991)

akta.pro primary industry

Solar Financing, Leasing & Ownership Platforms (Tax Equity, PPA, Securitization) (EUAMABAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

PPA Origination, Structuring & Offtake Contracting (Physical/Financial, Sleeves) (EUAMAMAD), Hybrid PPAs (Renewables + Storage) & Firm Renewable Products (EUAGADAI), Renewable Energy Asset Management (Solar/Wind/Hydro/Geothermal) (EUAEAMAB), Renewable Energy Infrastructure (FSAAAKAG)

Keywords

• Solar power investment
• Renewable energy funds
• Photovoltaic asset management
• Corporate PPA services
• Green energy securities

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Infrastructure, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Electricity Sales Revenue: Revenue generated from selling solar-generated electricity to retail electricity providers through 20-year fixed-price purchase agreements. The fund receives all proceeds and distributes dividends to investors after deducting maintenance costs and retained earnings.
2. Fund Management Services: Company manages power station operations, maintenance, monitoring, and investor relations as the licensed Type 2 financial instruments business operator

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Zek Co., Ltd. develops, finances, and operates utility-scale solar photovoltaic power plants in Japan and packages them as 20-year shared investment funds (太陽光分譲ファンド) sold to individual investors. Each fund is structured as a separate limited liability company (合同会社) that owns a specific solar plant, sells electricity to retail electricity providers under fixed-price agreements, and distributes dividends to investors. The company is also transitioning from the FIT (Feed-in Tariff) scheme to off-site corporate PPA contracts to supply renewable electricity to corporate buyers.

Product overview

Zek Co., Ltd. (株式会社ゼック, branded as 'Zero Energy Company') operates a portfolio of solar power shared investment funds (太陽光分譲ファンド) that enable individual investors to participate in solar power generation projects. The company develops, constructs, and manages solar power plants across Japan, offering 20-year fixed-price PPA-based investment opportunities. The product lineup includes 14 numbered fund products (from Kashima 1 to Ibaraki PPA 1), with individual funds ranging from 192kW to over 1,100kW capacity. Supporting services include land recruitment for power plant sites and remote monitoring systems for investors to track plant performance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Solar Power Investment Fund Series (FIT Model) - 13 numbered funds (Kashima 1, Kashima 2, Tsukuba 3, Mito 4, Kashima 5, Shimotsuke 6, Shirosato 7, Hokota/Omitama 8, Higashimatsushima 9, Kashima 10, Hokota/Naka 11, Hokota 12, Hokota 13) A series of 13 solar power shared investment funds (太陽光分譲ファンド) under Japan's FIT (Feed-in Tariff) regime that enable individual Japanese investors to participate in utility-scale solar projects. Minimum investment of 500,000 yen per unit, 20-year fund terms, 8.0%+ annual distribution rates. Plants located across Ibaraki, Tochigi, and Miyagi prefectures.
• Ibaraki PPA 1 Solar Power Investment Fund A solar power investment fund using the off-site corporate PPA model. Electricity is generated in Ibaraki Prefecture (Date City, Hokota City, Kamaishi City) and sold under a corporate PPA arrangement with TEPCO Energy Partner acting as intermediary to corporate offtaker PPIH (Don Quijote). Marked the company's strategic shift from FIT to PPA.
• Solar Power Plant Site Land Recruitment Service A site acquisition service that recruits and evaluates land suitable for utility-scale solar power plant construction, targeting areas near Tokyo with 5,000-20,000 square meters of flat, non-agricultural land with unobstructed sunlight. Open to landowners with unused land assets.

Quantifiable outcome

• All 14 funds achieved 8.0%+ annual distribution rates as of September 2023
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Tokyo Electric Power Company Energy Partner (東京電力エナジーパートナー)coreTechnology or Integration · 13 November 2023Partnership with TEPCO EP as retail electricity provider for PPA contracts. TEPCO EP serves as the intermediary between ZEC's power stations and end-consumers in the PPA model, purchasing electricity and reselling to corporate customers.
• PPIH (Pan Pacific International Holdings / Mega Don Quijote)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 November 2023Corporate PPA agreement where PPIH receives renewable energy from 4 solar power stations through off-site corporate PPA model. ZEC provides electricity generation while TEPCO EP acts as intermediary. This is ZEC's first major PPA project with a major retailer.
• Shimotsuke City, Tochigi Prefecture (下野市)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 June 2015Disaster cooperation agreement for emergency power supply. The Shimotsuke 6 solar power station provides standalone emergency power conditioning systems that can charge batteries for use at evacuation centers during power outages. ZEC bears all costs for equipment and training.
• Japan Climate Initiative (JCI) / 気候変動イニシアティブminorOthersZEC participates in the Japan Climate Initiative as an external initiative commitment, demonstrating corporate responsibility toward climate change mitigation.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Sunrun: Leading US residential solar company operating a lease/PPA model that lets retail customers access solar generation without owning hardware. While Zek accesses retail capital rather than retail end-customers, both companies are specialist intermediaries bringing individual investors/consumers into long-term solar cash flows.
• Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital: US-based public company that finances and owns renewable-energy infrastructure using a mix of corporate PPA and structured investment products. Closely comparable business model to Zek in that both raise pooled capital from yield-seeking investors to own and operate producing renewable assets under long-term contracts.
• SBI Renewable Energy: Japanese renewable-energy development and investment vehicle within SBI Holdings. Closely comparable to Zek in operating Japanese solar/renewable infrastructure for retail and institutional capital and in pivoting from FIT into corporate PPA.
• NTT Anode Energy: Japan's largest solar IPP and a wholly-owned subsidiary of NTT. Both companies develop and own utility-scale solar assets in Japan and sell renewable electricity under long-term offtake contracts, with NTT Anode Energy operating at materially larger scale (hundreds of MW) than Zek.
• Rakuten Energy: Rakuten Group's energy retail and renewable-supply arm operating retail-electricity tariffs and renewable PPAs in Japan. Comparable in offering renewable supply to Japanese end customers; differs in that Rakuten focuses on retail electricity rather than pooled-investment funds.

Broad incumbents

• Brookfield Renewable Partners: Global renewable-energy yieldco under Brookfield that owns and operates a multi-gigawatt renewable portfolio under corporate and utility PPAs. Operates the same business model as Zek (capital pools owning long-term renewable cash flows) at a dramatically larger global scale.
• Macquarie Asset Management: Global asset manager with large renewable-energy and infrastructure-investment funds active in Asia. Comparable in operating pooled investment vehicles that own long-life renewable assets under PPAs, but at institutional scale across multiple geographies and asset classes.
• ENEOS Holdings: Japan's largest petroleum group and an integrated energy player with a sizable renewable-energy and PPA business. Functions as a broad incumbent with renewable investment capabilities alongside its core refining business.
• Tokyo Electric Power Company Energy Partner (TEPCO EP): TEPCO's retail-electricity and energy-services subsidiary that buys and resells electricity from Zek's PPA assets to corporate customers such as PPIH. Comparable in that it competes for the same Japanese retail and corporate-renewable customers, but operates at vastly larger scale across the broader electricity value chain.

Emerging players

• Daiwa Energy & Infrastructure Fund: Japanese-asset-manager product pooling investor capital into renewable-energy and infrastructure assets. Closely comparable to Zek in sourcing Japanese retail capital to invest in renewable infrastructure, though Daiwa is a much larger, institutional-grade vehicle manager.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/zecjapan
• Facebookfacebook.com/zecjapan

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Zek Co., Ltd.