
On November 22, 2024, Kansai Electric Power and RWE Renewables submitted a planning-stage “document on primary environmental impact consideration” for an up to 1.68GW offshore wind project they plan to develop off the coast of Hiyama in Hokkaido.
According to the document, the “Hokkaido Hiyama Offshore Wind Generation Project” the two companies are considering developing would consist of up to 120 fixed-bottom turbines, each with an output of 14MW to 24MW.
The project would be located in the “Sea Area Offshore Hiyama,” a “Promising Zone” under the Act on Promoting the Utilization of Sea Areas for the Development of Marine Renewable Energy Power Generation Facilities and one of the candidates for Japan’s fourth offshore wind auction round expected to take place next year.
Kansai EPCO and RWE join other developers that already submitted primary environmental impact consideration documents for projects in the area. Those include J-Power (722MW), Cosmo Eco Power (1GW), and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (1.5GW). Last month, Hokkaido EPCO also revealed plans to develop an up to 1.14GW offshore wind project in the area.