Fukushima Wind Semi-Sub Ready for Installation

The Semi-submersible floater before the turbine was installed. By Wendy Laursen 06-22-2015 02:24:02

The assembly and delivery of a 7MW wind turbine on to a semi-submersible floater in Japan’s Onahama port in Fukushima has been successfully completed.

The project is being undertaken by a consortium consisting of Marubeni, the University of Tokyo, Mitsubishi, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Japan Marine United, Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding, Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal, Hitachi, Furukawa Electric, Shimizu and Mizuho Information & Research.

Three floating wind turbines and one floating power sub-station will be deployed off the coast of Fukushima. The first phase of the project involved the construction of a 2MW floating wind turbine, the world first 25MVA floating substation and undersea cable which were completed on November 11, 2013. In the second phase, two 7MW wind turbines will be installed by the end of 2015.

The project aims to establish a business model that will see the technology exported from Japan. This is anticipated to create new employment in Fukushima, helping the region recover from the damage of the great East Japan earthquake of 2011.

The offshore floating wind farm project is being sponsored by Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and has been underway since March 2012.

The next phase of the project will include delivery of the facilities to the testing area and connection of the undersea cable. Commissioning is then due to begin in September with the facility expected to commence demonstration operations in December.