Geoscientific Investigation to Advance Offshore Wind Power Generation in Japan

In order to accelerate the development of offshore wind power projects in the future, the Japanese government is designing a system to establish a “centralized system” in which the government and local governments are involved to conduct surveys more expeditiously and efficiently.

As part of these measures, in Japanese fiscal year 2022, the Japan Energy and Metals National Corporation (JOGMEC) added the task of surveying geological structures, etc. related to offshore wind power generation to its operations under the revised law, and began full-scale surveys that JOGMEC is responsible for the initial stages necessary to investigate for power generation projects.

JOGMEC will conduct the initial stage of the survey necessary to consider power generation projects on behalf of the project sponsors in Japanese fiscal year 2023. By providing the results of these surveys to developers, JOGMEC plans to eliminate the adverse effects of duplicate surveys and to streamline and accelerate the project formation process.

JOGMEC’s surveys include bathymetry, seafloor surface, seismic exploration, exploratory drilling, wind conditions, and meteorological and oceanographic surveys.

This paper describes our approach to the surveys and the technical issues involved, taking into account the characteristics of the geological, meteorological and oceanographic setting of Japan.