One of Japan¡¯s leading prefectures for offshore wind power is urging authorities to reissue a tender for two critical projects after trading house Mitsubishi Corp. withdrew from the planned developments due to rising costs.
Hitoshi Miura, director of clean energy policy for Akita Prefecture, said the local economy was in urgent need of a replacement investor. Japanese officials have said they will re-auction those projects abandoned by Mitsubishi, but haven¡¯t offered a concrete timeline.
¡°We were deeply shocked by the withdrawal,¡± said Miura, referring to Mitsubishi¡¯s decision during a panel discussion Thursday at the Global Offshore Wind Summit in Akita.
Mitsubishi is withdrawing from three offshore wind projects, giving up the rights it won in 2021 to develop and operate two sites in Akita and a third in Chiba Prefecture. Chief Executive Officer Katsuya Nakanishi said in August that construction costs had more than doubled in the period since the company first placed its bid.
The decision was a blow to Japan¡¯s plan to have 10 gigawatts of offshore wind power capacity installed by the end of the decade, rising to 30-45 GW by 2040. The nation remains heavily reliant on fossil fuels for electricity and has emphasized the need to jump-start renewable energy projects to bring more clean power to the grid.
But the fledgling offshore wind power industry is grappling with high interest rates and material costs, as well as a pushback against green policies in some countries. Even to reach its 2030 target, Japan will need a roughly fortyfold increase in capacity.
Other speakers at the conference in Akita said the industry needs much stronger government support, especially to help ease financial pressures on developers. Delays to projects are making investors anxious about future opportunities, said Masaya Tajima, director for wind power energy for Hokkaido, another of Japan¡¯s leading regions for the sector.
Despite these setbacks, other renewable energy developers, like Jera Nex, are optimistic about the industry¡¯s future. ¡°There¡¯s a perception that offshore wind power is dead,¡± Masato Yamada, the company¡¯s senior vice president Japan, said at the event, ¡°but the initiative hasn¡¯t even truly begun.¡±
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