Japan Wind Development and NTT Anode Energy’s joint venture Toyohata Hobokujo Wind Development completed the environmental impact assessment process for the Toyohata Hobokujo onshore wind power plant it is developing in Tohoku Town, Aomori Prefecture.
According to the finalized environmental impact assessment report made available for public viewing on February 28, 2025, construction work on the power plant is expected to begin in April 2027 and end in November 2028. Four months of trial operation are scheduled before the project’s planned entry into commercial operation in April 2029.
When the assessment process for the project was launched in 2016, its “planning-stage document on primary environmental impact consideration” expected the power plant to consist of five 2MW to 3.3MW turbines totaling up to 16.5MW. In the assessment methodology stage, the scale was increased to five 2MW to 3.6MW turbines for a maximum total of 18MW.
The assessment was completed with the project scaled down to four 4.2MW Vestas turbines, with their combined output limited to 12.92MW. Toyohata Hobokujo Wind Development expects the power plant to operate at a 21.7% capacity factor.
Twelve operational wind power plants, all onshore, are located in the vicinity of the project including the 51MW Futamata Wind Power Plant developed and majority owned by Japan Wind Development and the 50MW Eurus Noheji Wind Farm. Multiple other onshore and offshore projects are under development in the area too.
Japan Wind Development was established in 1999. In 2015, it was sold to Bain Capital, which then sold it to Infroneer Holdings in 2024. To date, the company has developed over 550MW of operational wind projects in Japan, accounting close to 10% of the 5.84GW 2024 estimated total.
