Offshore wind turbine supplier MHI Vestas has won an order to deliver wind turbines for a wind farm project offshore of Yurihonjo city in Akita Prefecture, Japan.
The contract was announced Thursday by Renova, a partner in Akita Yurihonjo Offshore Wind GK (AYOW), which is developing the wind farm.
Other partners in AYOW are Cosmo Eco Power Co, JR-EAST Energy Development Co, and Tohoku Electric Power Co., Inc.
The offshore wind farm is expected to have a power generating capacity of approximately 700 MW, making it one of the largest offshore wind farms in Japan.
According to Renova, AYOW is currently engaged in dialogues with local residents, fishermen and other local stakeholders, while at the same time holding consultations on how the wind farm will contribute to the local community, conducting environmental impact assessments and various other surveys, and examining technical specifications.
Related: MHI Vestas Eyes Further Asia Pacific Growth. Appoints Regional Manager
Commenting on the selection of MHI Vestas for the supply of wind turbines for the project, Yosuke Kiminami, Founding CEO of Renova said: "The Yurihonjo project will be a pioneer in the Japanese offshore wind market, and we recognize that the reliability of the wind turbines to be used is crucial. I am sure that the wind turbines developed by MHI Vestas, which commands one of the largest shares of the global offshore wind turbine [market], will be perfectly suited for our project."
"We look forward to working with MHI Vestas to ensure that the project is deeply rooted in the local community and contributes to regional development."
The project has been under development since 2015 and a project plan was drawn up based on the Second Phase of Akita Prefectural Strategy for New Energy Industries formulated by Akita Prefecture in 2016. AYOW began wind condition measurements of the site in 2016 and started seabed ground surveys in the following year.
In 2017, AYOW also began carrying out the procedures for environmental impact assessments and holding briefings to explain the project to local stakeholders.