Japan to Resume Offshore Wind Lease Sales in December with Revised Rules

Yuka Obayashi
Tuesday, November 15, 2022

Japan plans to resume public auctions for offshore wind power projects in December under revised rules aimed at encouraging a wider range of operators and accelerating the development of infrastructure, the industry ministry said on Tuesday.

The schedule for the second major round of auctions to select operators for four new areas capable of generating 1.8 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind power a year was presented by the ministry to a committee of experts to discuss ways to promote renewable energy.

As part of Japan's decarbonization strategy, the government plans to install up to 10 GW of offshore wind capacity by 2030 and up to 45 GW by 2040.

But an auction for the Happo-Noshiro area in northern Japan was abruptly suspended in March after complaints from businesses about the lack of clarity around the bid process. 

The criticism increased after the government last December selected three consortiums, all led by Mitsubishi Corp., to operate all three areas in the first major round of offshore auctions.

After lengthy discussions and many public comments, the industry and land ministries amended the bid rules late last month, giving a higher evaluation score to operators that submit earlier start-up dates and setting a 1 GW limit on bids that one consortium can win when multiple ocean areas are auctioned.

To discourage a focus on price alone, the evaluation process will give all bids below the market an equal score in their assessment on price.

Global companies, including Denmark's Orsted and Germany's RWE, have shown interest in the Japanese market, but industry sources say the limit on how much one group can win is discouraging because it reduces the potential for economies of scale.

An official at the ministry said the scheme was designed to cover the preliminary stages and would be dropped once the initial auctions have taken place.


(Reuters - Reporting by Yuka Obayashi; editing by Barbara Lewis)

Categories: Energy Drilling Activity Renewables Regulations Offshore Wind Renewable Energys

Related Stories

Valeura Wraps Up Infill Drilling Campaign in Gulf of Thailand

MODEC and Samsung Team Up to Install Carbon Capture Tech on FPSO

Eco Wave Finds Partner for Wave Energy Project in India

US Operator Finds Oil Offshore Vietnam

Saipem’s Castorone Vessel on Its Way to Türkiye’s Largest Gas Field

Subsea Redesign Underway for Floating Offshore Wind

Transocean’s Drillship to Stay in India Under New $111M Deal

Sunda Energy Closing in on Jack-Up Deal for Chuditch-2 Appraisal Well

Makin' a List ... Trump Prioritizes Energy Exploration, Production, Export

US Firm Finds Chinese Partner to Deliver Mobile Offshore Drilling Units

Current News

Argentina YPF to Shed Offshore Exploration Projects

Cairn India Might Invest in US Oil Servicing Firms to Increase Production

All Gas from Conrad’s Mako Field to be Sold to Indonesia’s PLN

ORE Catapult and Japan’s FLOWRA to Jointly Advance Floating Wind

Shell Hires Noble’s Drillship for Work in Southeast Asia

Second Hai Long Substation Heads to Project Site Offshore Taiwan

Shell Launches Next Phase of Malaysia's Deepwater Project with First Oil Production

CNOOC Discovers ‘Vast Exploration Prospects’ in China’s Beibu Gulf Basin

China Unveils Plans for New Offshore Wind Farms to Tackle Carbon Emissions

Japan and South Korea Look to Partner Up with US for Alaska Pipeline

Subscribe for AOG Digital E‑News

AOG Digital E-News is the subsea industry's largest circulation and most authoritative ENews Service, delivered to your Email three times per week

https://accounts.newwavemedia.com