Today, around the world, offshore wind power is being increasingly deployed on a large scale. Technological innovations have led to a virtuous cycle of decreasing costs and increasing adoption. For Japan, surrounded by the sea, utilizing offshore wind power is highly significant and an urgent necessity, as deployment of renewable energy on a large scale is what will enable Japan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, the goal announced by the government in October 2020. Large-scale development of offshore wind power will also have a major impact on domestic industry. Offshore wind power, which can be expected to utilize domestic and regional resources, is needed to be part of the industrial policy.
This report is intended to indicate the direction for the steady deployment of offshore wind power as a form of energy that will support Japan into the future. It provides an overview of the current situation in Japan and looks at the characteristics of other countries and regions leading the way in deployment of offshore wind power, in terms of both quantity and cost reductions, in order to clarify a direction forward for the country.
*This report is the reorganization of Chapter 2 and the following sections of the Japanese original released in December 2020.
<Table of Contents>
Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1 Current State of Offshore Wind Power in Japan
1. Government policy and deployment levels
2. Sea area occupancy procedures under the Renewable Energy Sea Area Utilization Act
3. Status of feed-in tariff system
4. Connection to power grid
5. Regional initiatives
6. Major potential for floating offshore wind power
Chapter 2 Tackling Challenges
1. Ambitious targets and medium/long-term deployment projections
2. Enhancement and operation of power grids with a view to large-scale deployment of offshore wind power
3. Enhancing the government’s leadership
4. Creating an environment for fair competition and stable projects
5. Building sustainable supply chains
Conclusion
