Japan's Q4 solar cell sales rise, but pace slows

* Sales of Q4 solar cells up over 60 pct year-on-year

* Solar panel subsidies for small businesses no longer paid

* Japan now reviewing 2011/2012 feed-in tariff plans

TOKYO, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Sales of solar cells in Japan rose by over 60 percent in October-December from a year earlier, though the pace of increase slowed as Tokyo prepares to curtail subsidies in the sector.

The growing trend for renewable energy is hitting the amount of electricity power companies supply through regular grid networks.

Quarterly industry data showed on Wednesday that domestic solar panel shipments, which include both domestic production and imports, rose 63.3 percent from a year earlier to 311.5 megawatts in October-December, while exports climbed 37.7 percent to 371.6 MW.

Year-on-year growth in domestic shipments peaked at 191.6 percent in October-December, 2009, when shipments totalled 190.7 MW, according to the Japan Photovoltaic Energy Association.

The highest pace of sales was marked when Japan launched a price incentive scheme for surplus solar power in November 2009 as an alternative to subsidies.

The Japanese government will no longer pay subsidies for small businesses to install solar panels from the year starting in April, while similar subsidies for house owners, the main buyers of solar panels, will be maintained.

It is also carrying out an annual review ahead of the next fiscal year on the price incentive scheme.

Like many countries in Europe, Japan launched a so-called "feed-in" tariff scheme in November 2009 to make utilities buy electricity from renewable sources at a higher rate, initially starting with surplus electricity of small-volume solar only. (Reporting by Risa Maeda; Editing by Joseph Radford)