On August 8, 2019, Hokkaido Electric Power Company (hereafter “Hokkaido EPCO”) and Green Power Investment (GPI), a wind power developer, announced that they reached an agreement to jointly work on offshore wind power systems located in Ishikari Bay in Hokkaido. Hokkaido EPCO will work with GPI in order to expand its wind power business in the region. GPI has been developing a solar power plant in Futtsu City, Chiba Prefecture. It is also building a 121,600 kW-capacity Wind Farm in Tsugaru City, Aomori Prefecture, expected to be completed in 2020.[1]
Hokkaido EPCO and GPI will jointly develop two projects in Ishikari City, including the Ishikari Bay New Port Wind Power Plant Installation Project and the Offshore Wind Power Generation Project in Ishikari Bay. Based on the agreement, GPI will be responsible for development and construction of the offshore wind power systems, and Hokkaido EPCO will provide technical support and regional response support.[2]
These projects were supported by the law on promotion of use of territorial waters for offshore renewable energy generation facilities. The law, which took effect in April 2019, was introduced to promote deployment of offshore wind power generation in Japan. The government wants to promote offshore wind and other kinds of renewable energy generation in order to enhance national energy security and reduce environmental impact.