JERA plans for offshore wind farm

JERA is planning to construct an offshore wind farm off Ishikari Bay, Hokkaido, Japan and has submitted its Planning Phase Environmental Impact Statement for the Ishikari Bay Offshore Wind Farm Construction Project to the Minister of Economy, Trade, and Industry.

JERA believes Ishikari Bay to be suitable for the development of bottom-fixed offshore wind power generation due to its favourable wind conditions, shallow seabed, and the spare capacity of the nearby power grid.

The planned offshore wind power generation project (the ‘Project’) will be located at least 2.5 km offshore from the cities of Ishikari and Otaru and include as many as 65 wind turbines with a maximum generation capacity of 520 MW. To mitigate the impact on the power system of fluctuations in wind power generation output, the Project includes the installation of energy storage system.

As JERA aims to become a global leader in renewable energy, it has participated in offshore wind projects in the UK and Taiwan. JERA will apply its experiences and expertise in the construction and operation of such large-scale offshore wind projects to the current Project.

The Statement summarises the results of deliberations regarding issues for which environmental conservation should be considered at the project planning stage. On 25 August the Statement will be posted on JERA’s website and made available for public review at the related administrative agencies.

Those who have opinions on the Statement from an environmental conservation standpoint may submit them via post.

JERA will move the Project steadily forward under the guidance of the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry and other related authorities, giving due consideration to the opinions of the other stakeholders.

The Planning Phase Environmental Impact Statement is the first of four phases stipulated under the Environmental Impact Assessment Law.