The Japanese government released the results of the "Round 2" offshore wind auctions. Three separate consortia were announced the winners of three areas. Eyes are now on "Round 3" auctions in 2024.
“Round 2” Auctions
"Round 2" offshore wind auctions followed the "Round 1" auctions which were conducted in 2021. While the Round 1 auctions were subject to the Feed-in Tariff (FIT) regime, the Round 2 auctions were subject to the Feed-in Premium (FIP) regime.
Round 2 auctions covered the following four areas:
- Happo-Noshiro, Akita Prefecture (356MW);
- Oga-Katagami-Akita, Akita Prefecture (336MW);
- Murakami-Tainai, Niigata Prefecture (700MW); and
- Saikai-Enoshima, Nagasaki Prefecture (424MW).
Bid submission for these four areas was open from 28 December 2022 to 30 June 2023.
Auction Results
The results of the auctions for three of the four areas were released on 13 December 20231. The release of the results for the remaining area has been postponed until March 2024 due to the potential successful bidder being required to re-submit their bid.
The winners of the three areas were:
- for Oga-Katagami-Akita: JERA, J-Power, Itochu and Tohoku Electric;
- for Murakami-Tainai: Mitsui, RWE and Osaka Gas; and
- for Saikai-Enoshima: Sumitomo and TEPCO Renewable Power.
The released announcement materials reveal information that was not publicly available until now, including the following:
- the number of bidders were as follows: three for Oga-Katagami-Akita; four for Murakami-Tainai; and two for Saikai-Enoshima;
- the bid prices of the successful bidders were as follows: JPY 3/kWh for Oga-Katagami-Akita; JPY 3/kWh for Murakami-Tainai; and JPY 22.18/kWh for Saikai-Enoshima; and
- the committed commercial operation dates (CODs) were as follows: 30 June 2028 for Oga-Katagami-Akita; 30 June 2029 for Murakami-Tainai; and 31 August 2029 for Saikai-Enoshima.
Next Steps
For the successful bidders, they will now need to accelerate their process to meet the committed CODs mentioned above.
For others, the focus will now turn to "Round 3" auctions. Round 3 auctions will likely cover the following two areas:
- Sea of Japan (South), Aomori Prefecture (600MW); and
- Yuza, Yamagata Prefecture (450MW).
The draft auction guidelines for the above two areas were released in relation to the public comment process that runs from 17 November 2023 to 17 December 2023. The auction guidelines for these areas are expected to be finalized and released on or around the end date of such public comment period. Round 3 bid submissions will likely be due by the end of June 2024.
1 https://www.meti.go.jp/press/2023/12/20231213003/20231213003.html
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