Japan looking at space based power generation

Now here is a theme that has been bandied about the science fiction community for some time and now looks like someone is seriously looking into implementation. Shaun Saunders sends in an article from PopSci.com concerning a power project being considered by the Japanese. This power plant, if constructed, would power 300,000 homes and being solar, would have a very very low carbon footprint. But what truly makes this plant unusual is its location - Earth orbit.

According to the article:

• The satellite will have a surface area of four square kilometers, and transmit power via microwave to a base station on Earth.

The cost of the project is slated at about 21 billion with a majority of funding coming from Mitsubishi.