Japan energy min calls for expanding feed-in tariff

TOKYO, Sept 17 (Reuters) - Japan's new energy minister, Masayuki Naoshima, said on Thursday he wants to expand utilities' purchases of new energy from households to beyond solar power to help contribute to further cuts in greenhoues gas emissions.

He said he would make no change to a scheme to take effect on Nov. 1, under which utilities will buy surplus solar-power electricity that households produce at a higher rate.

"I would like to create a system that would buy (power) from a variety of sources including new energy," said Naoshima, 63, who was appointed on Wednesday as minister of economy, trade and industry, succeeding Toshihiro Nikai.

He said the current law stipulates a provision for a revision two years from now, so he would push the ministry to prepare for the new system.

Japan started in January to pay subsidies of about 10 percent of the cost for house owners to set up solar panels on their roofs.

The new scheme was aimed at helping Japan cut greenhouse gas emissions and was initiated by outgoing Prime Minister Taro Aso's government, which has said Japan will increase its solar power capacity to 10 times the 2005 amount by 2020 and 40 times the 2005 amount by 2030.

As minister, Naoshima is in charge of energy policy in the world's third-biggest oil consumer and importer.

Naoshima also said he would prod China to reach a deal on details of last June's agreement with China to jointly develop gas fields and share profits in disputed areas of the East China Sea.

He was appointed the Democratic Party's policy chief in 2007 and was in charge of formulating the party's campaign platform for the Aug. 30 election that brought it to power.

Before being elected to parliament's upper house in 1992 from a small left-leaning party, Naoshima was an employee of Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) and was active as an automotive industry union official. (Reporting by Osamu Tsukimori; Editing by Michael Watson)