Tokyo- Japanese home electronics company Sharp Corp and Italy's largest power company Enel SpA plan to launch a joint venture to develop a number of photovoltaic power plants by the end of 2012, Sharp said Thursday.

The joint business was expected to start in spring, and it plans to build power plants mainly in southern Italy with a total output capacity of 189 megawatts, using thin-film solar cells, the Japanese company said.

Sharp, which is the world's second-largest solar-cell producer, plans to acquire a majority stake in the joint venture. The two companies would invest about 100 billion yen
(1.05 billion dollars) in their joint business between 2009 and 2012.

Sharp and Enel also plan to build a thin-film solar cell production factory in Italy with another European firm and start operations in mid-2010 with an annual output capacity of 480 megawatts, Sharp said. (dpa)