The first offshore wind farm in Japan, known as the Noshiro Port offshore wind farm, began its first day of commercial operation on December 22, 2022. According to a statement released by Marubeni, the Noshiro Port offshore wind farm has begun operations based on the feed-in tariff program for renewable energy.
Through the Akita Offshore Wind Corporation, which is jointly owned by the Marubeni Corporation, the Obayashi Corporation, Tohoku Electric Power, Cosmo Eco Power, the Kansai Electric Power, Chubu Electric Power, The Akita Bank, Ohmori, Sawakigumi Corporation, Kyowa Oil, Katokensetsu, Kanpu, and Sankyo, the first utility-scale offshore wind power project in Japan has been implemented.
With its headquarters at Noshiro Port, the Akita Offshore Wind Corporation intends to run and maintain the offshore wind farms for the next 20 years. According to Marubeni, since the construction of the wind farm began in February 2020, a total of 33 wind turbines have been installed at Akita Port and Noshiro Port, and commercial operation has been achieved almost on the original schedule. This information comes from the company’s statement that was made in September 2022.
The bottom-fixed offshore wind farm has 33 wind turbines that are rated V117-4.2 MW in capacity. Seajacks International, a company that specializes in offshore installation services, has recently finished the installation of all 33 wind turbines. The operation was completed by the self-propelled jack up vessel Seajacks Zaratan, in conjunction with the principal installation contractor Kajima Corporation and the turbine provider Vestas Japan. Over the course of its anticipated service life, the 140 MW project will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than two million tons and provide electricity to about 150,000 houses. Notable is the fact that Japan intends to install up to 10 GW of offshore wind capacity by the year 2030 and up to 45 GW by the year 2040.