Major oil distributor Showa Shell Sekiyu K.K. said Wednesday it will build one of Japan's largest biomass power stations in Kawasaki at a cost of around ¥16 billion.

The planned 49,000-kw facility, scheduled to become operational in December 2015, will generate enough electricity to meet the needs of around 83,000 households, company officials said.

The Kawasaki plant will be fueled by wood chips imported from North America and sell electricity generated to utilities under the feed-in tariff system for renewable energy introduced in July 2012 in response to the Fukushima nuclear crisis.

In its medium-term business plan announced in February, Showa Shell said it will aim to double its current power output capacity of some 500,000 kw to help stabilize the national electricity supply and make it a pillar of its operations.