Visionaries 2014

The Wind from the Future

Fukushima Floating Offshore Wind Farm Demonstration Project

As use of renewable energy increases around the world,

interest is growing in the harvesting of wind energy from off the coast of Japan.
Unfortunately, numerous technical challenges stand in the way of achieving this goal of generating electric
power from floating wind turbines.
Hitachi is participating in a consortium that is taking on this challenge through a demonstration project,
with roles that include the manufacture of a downwind turbine and the development of a world-first 66-kV
offshore substation*.
The wind turbine and substation are moored approximately 20 km off the coast of Fukushima Prefecture
and commenced floating offshore power generation in November 2013.

Extensive Wind Energy Resources Waiting As a mountainous country with limited flat
Oshore land, Japan has a shortage of favorable sites for
The shortage of power generation capacity afflicted wind power and is seen as lagging behind Europe
a wide area of Japan, including the Tokyo region, or China in its adoption of this form of power
after many power plants were damaged in the generation. Also, whereas offshore wind turbines
Great East Japan Earthquake of March 2011. in Europe tend to use fixed-bottom configurations
Subsequently, along with ongoing efforts by
households and businesses to save power, there * The floating oshore wind power generation
system is part of the FY2011 Fukushima floating
was also an acceleration of moves to encourage the
oshore wind farm demonstration project (Fukushima
wider use of renewable sources of energy such as FORWARD) funded by the Ministry of Economy, Trade
photovoltaic or wind power. and Industry.

12 Visionaries 2014
 the sea around Japan is known to have more
reliable and strong wind conditions. This means
that, surrounded as it is by a broad expanse of
ocean, Japan has extensive offshore wind energy
resources waiting to be tapped. In other words,
offshore floating wind turbines are an appropriate
form of power generation for Japans geographical
conditions.
Professor Takeshi Ishihara of the Graduate
School of Engineering at the University of Tokyo
was among the first to recognize this situation
Wataru Saito
and engage in research into floating offshore wind
power generation.

Grand Project Gets Underway o

Fukushima
Wataru Saito (Chief Project Manager, Power
& Industrial Systems Division, Power Systems
Company, Hitachi, Ltd.), who has participated
in the work of Professor Ishihara explained the
situation as follows.
Having recognized the potential of floating
turbines, Professor Ishihara had undertaken some
work on his own initiative in collaboration with
construction companies and others, with practical
investigatory work having only just begun when
the Great East Japan Earthquake struck. This led
to the Fukushima floating offshore wind farm(a) (a) Wind farm
demonstration project. A group of wind turbines used
for power generation and also
The project was able to start in earnest called as wind park. Installing
when money was budgeted as part of the post- a number of wind turbines
(up to several dozen) in the
earthquake recovery and reconstruction work.
same place can reduce the
Hitachi then formally joined the demonstration construction and operating
Photograph courtesy of Fukushima
Oshore Wind Consortium project in December 2011 after invitations to costs per unit of output.
participate were announced by the Agency for
Natural Resources and Energy of the Ministry of
Economy, Trade and Industry. It was through this
in which the turbine foundations are on the sea process that the grand project to build a world-first
floor, Japans lack of shallow offshore seabed means offshore wind farm several tens of kilometers off
it has limited sites suitable for this approach. the coast of Fukushima Prefecture got underway.
On the other hand, compared to onshore sites, This project to aid recovery in Fukushima and

Consortium members Main role

Feasibility study, approval and licensing, O&M,
Marubeni Corporation (project integrator)
collaboration with fishery industry
Metocean measurement and prediction technology,
The University of Tokyo (technical advisor)
marine navigation safety, public relation
Coordination for grid integration, environmental impact
Mitsubishi Corporation
assessment
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. V-shape semi-sub (7 MW)
Japan Marine United Corporation Advanced spar, floating substation
Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. Compact semi-sub (2 MW)
Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Advanced steel material
Hitachi, Ltd. Floating substation
Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd. Large capacity undersea cable
Shimizu Corporation Pre-survey of ocean area, construction technology
Mizuho Information & Research Institute, Inc Documentation, committee operation

O&M: operation and maintenance

Roles of consortium members. The project draws on the knowledge and technologies of each company.

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 Offshore substation 3 wind turbines
66/22 kV 25 MVA 16 MW (planned)
Onshore switching Offshore substation equipment 7 MW 7 MW
station
66 kV
2 MW

Onshore substation
equipment

Grid connection Monitoring and

control system

Undersea cable

Overview of demonstration project. The electric power generated by the wind turbines will be stepped up to 66 kV for transmission to the
onshore switching station. The 66-kV floating oshore substation used for this purpose will be a world first.

trial a floating offshore wind farm was contracted such as higher generation efficiency. The way a
by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry to downwind turbine naturally tracks changes in
a consortium of 10 companies and one university. wind angle when it blows from the side can be
The first stage involves the installation of a single thought of as a match for the floating platform.
floating offshore wind power generation system The downwind turbine was developed for use in
b ownwind turbine with a 2-MW downwind turbine(b), a world- Japanese conditions where there is little flat land
A wind turbine in which the
rotor is oriented downwind of
first 25-MVA floating offshore substation, and available. In addition to selecting the transformer,
the tower. This configuration an undersea cable. The second stage will see the power conditioning system (PCS), and other
reduces the load on major installation of two 7-MW floating offshore wind electrical components with consideration for the
components during sudden
gu s t s du e t o a c o n t r o l power generation systems. swaying that occurs on a floating platform, the
mechanism that allows the There is a certain significance in Fukushima system also incorporates a stability mechanism
rotor to freely orient itself being chosen for the site of this project. Mitsuru that controls the pitch of the blades to minimize
downwind. Downwind
turbines are suitable for Saeki (Senior Project Manager, Power Systems this swaying.
dicult environments such as Company, Hitachi, Ltd.), who was involved Another feature of this project is the construction
complex terrain.
in reconstruction work at the time, recalls the of a world-first floating substation. Typically, the
decision as follows. longer the distance electric power needs to be
Fukushima Prefecture had a strong desire to transmitted, the greater the losses. To minimize
pursue renewable energy. Whether or not this losses over the long distance from the offshore
project would provide direct assistance for the wind turbine to the shore (approximately 20 km),
recovery, we felt that this was not something that an offshore substation that raises the transmission
could be ignored. voltage from 22 kV to 66 kV was part of the project
plan from the earliest stages.
Installation at a Floating Site
Hitachis responsibilities in the project included
the 2-MW offshore downwind turbine, a world- Photograph courtesy of Fukushima
first 66-kV floating offshore substation, and its Oshore Wind Consortium

monitoring system.
Most wind turbines used for power generation
have an upwind configuration in which the rotor
is oriented upwind of the tower. As Mr. Saeki
explained, the reasons for choosing a downwind
configuration for this project included factors
specific to a turbine floating at sea.
We believe that a downwind design will have
particular advantages for a wind turbine mounted The electrical conversion equipment is installed on
Mitsuru Saeki on a floating platform that is subject to tilting, the top of this floating substation.

14 Visionaries 2014
 Toshiyuki Takada (Department Manager, Wind
Turbine Business Department, Power & Industrial Weight of wind turbine: 250 t (approx.)
Rated generator output: 2 MW
Systems Division, Power Systems Company,
Hitachi, Ltd.), who has responsibility for this work,
commented as follows.
While I had some concerns when we were only 106 m
given two months to prepare our proposal to the
66 m
Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, I spent
considerable time at the factory discussing the
Sea surface 16 m
work with the transformer designers and other
staff as we settled on how we wanted to proceed.
However, substation equipment is built on
the assumption that it will be installed on stable
ground. If inclined, the coils, core, or other
Main specifications of the 2-MW oshore downwind turbine. The wind turbine has
internal parts of a transformer can be left bare of been designed for floating use and manufactured to cope with the swaying that occurs.
transformer oil, compromising the insulation that
is vital to its operation and potentially causing a
fault. This meant that the major challenge was how swaying of the floating platform.
to deal with the swaying and inclining that would Kazutaka Yokoyama (Manager, Electrical
result from the large waves of the Pacific Ocean. Systems Engineering Department, Electrical
Futoshi Asaka (Engineer, Industrial Systems Solution Business Division, Power Systems
Engineering Section, Power Systems Company, Company, Hitachi, Ltd.), who had experience in
Hitachi, Ltd.), whose work included transformer technical developments that dealt with swaying,
testing, describes the situation as follows. added the following comment.
We had no experience of building high-voltage As Hitachi has had experience in building a wide
(66 kV) substation equipment for use in a swaying variety of transformers, including manufacturing
environment and this left us wondering how we large transformers that need to be robust enough
could go about testing it. What we ended up doing for transportation over long distances to overseas
Toshiyuki Takada
was to test the 25-MVA transformer inclined at sites and new designs that consider seismic
angle up to 35 to verify its ability to deal with the performance, we had the know-how to deal with
this new challenge. I believe that our success in
building the 66-kV floating offshore substation
was due to this experience.
A number of measures were adopted, including
raising the height of the oil tank, increasing the
quantity of transformer oil, and adding a number
of bolts to ensure that the core and coils would not

Futoshi Asaka

The 66-kV gas-insulated switchgear (top) and

22-kV vacuum-insulated switchgear (bottom) installed Inclination test of transformer. Because the transformer
in the substation. These can safely disconnect the will be installed on a floating platform, it needs
current flow if necessary. adequate measures for dealing with swaying. Kazutaka Yokoyama

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 become dislodged by the swaying. A program of and other parts of the wind turbine were separated,
detailed testing was then performed to confirm the blades loaded onto trucks in one piece, and
(c) ry dock that the equipment could cope with swaying and transported to a dry dock(c) at the Chiba Works
A facility used for the
inclination. of Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding Co., Ltd.
construction or repair
of ships. It consists of a Hideyuki Mimura (Senior Engineer, FH Wind
trench dug deep into the Collaboration between Consortium Turbine Business Department, Power & Industrial
ground that can be filled or
Partners Systems Division, Power Systems Company,
emptied of water. The dry
dock is emptied of water The project still faced the difficult tasks of Hitachi, Ltd.), who was responsible for the wind
to allow work to proceed. docking the wind turbine and substation to the turbine and acted as the technical liaison with
When the ship is ready to
depart, the water is then
floating platform, towing them to the installation Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding Co., Ltd.,
pumped back in to raise the site approximately 20 km off the coast of described the process as follows.
water level in the dry dock Fukushima, and then getting the system to operate The dock provided a stable location for placing
up to sea level.
as intended. the wind turbine. However, a certain amount of
After they were fabricated, the tower, nacelle, coordination was required to prepare a schedule

Trial of Floating Oshore Wind Power Generation System o Goto Islands

While the Fukushima floating offshore wind farm from 2014 onwards is to collect data from the offshore
demonstration project is making steady progress, site.
another trial of floating offshore wind power While the wind around Kabashima Island in the Goto
generation has commenced off the Goto Islands in Islands is strong, making it a good site for offshore
Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. A small (100 kW) prototype wind power generation, the 100-kW prototype was
wind turbine was installed 1 km off Kabashima Island, vulnerable to the forces of nature. In FY2012, the
part of Goto City, in June 2012. This was followed later region was struck by a one-in-50-year typhoon, one
by a larger demonstration model. of the strongest on record. Although the wind turbine
This demonstration project was led by the Ministry itself survived the typhoon, this led to changes in the
of the Environment, with participants including Toda construction of the 2-MW demonstration model,
Corporation, Hitachi, Fuyo Ocean Development & including a change to the maximum design wave
Engineering Co., Ltd., Kyoto University, and National height and revisions to parameters such as rotor
Maritime Research Institute. The 100-kW prototype vibration and angle of orientation.
installed in 2012 was the same unit that had been The project provides an opportunity to gather
used off Izena Island in Okinawa 10 years earlier. In valuable data on such questions as what form of wind
2013, a 2-MW downwind turbine (demonstration power generation is suitable for regions of ocean
model) supplied by Hitachi was installed, increasing like this that experience frequent typhoons. The data
the rotor size from 22 m to 80 m. Operation of collected and analyzed from the Goto Islands will
commercial-scale floating offshore wind power also provide valuable information for use in the wider
generation commenced in October 2013. The plan adoption of offshore wind power generation.

Goto Islands
Nagasaki Prefecture

Fukushima
Tokyo

Fukuoka

Images courtesy of joint participants in Ministry of the Environment s demonstration project for floating oshore wind power
generation

A demonstration project aimed at achieving wider adoption of oshore wind power generation is also being undertaken in Nagasaki Prefecture.

16 Visionaries 2014
 Photograph courtesy of
Fukushima Oshore Wind Consortium

Docking the wind turbine to the floating platform

(photographed at the Chiba Works of Mitsui
Engineering & Shipbuilding Co., Ltd.) Time constraints
meant work proceeded rapidly.

Photograph courtesy of Fukushima Oshore Wind Consortium

for completing the assembly work within tight
The substation fitted with electrical conversion equipment (front) and wind turbine (rear)
time constraints in an environment that was open are located about 2 km apart.
to the weather.
The substation was assembled at the Isogo
Works in the Yokohama Shipyard of Japan Marine responsible for the undersea optic cable, and by
United Corporation. calling on them, or others such as Hitachi Systems,
Further arrangements were then needed for Ltd., for help when problems like this happened,
transporting the assembled wind turbine and the we succeeded in building a fast and highly secure
fitted-out substation to the sea off Fukushima. In network.
particular, the 32-m draft of the substation during By overcoming the various problems that arose
towing meant it was at risk of running aground in in this way, they succeeded in supplying power
shallow waters. from the mainland to the substation and wind
Together with Mitsui Engineering & power generation system.
Shipbuilding Co., Ltd., we held discussions with
the relevant agencies on aerial identification Symbol of Reconstruction and the Future
during the period up until the power cables were Hideyuki Mimura
The Fukushima floating offshore wind farm
connected out at sea, commented Mr. Mimura. demonstration project commenced operation in
The wind turbine and substation were November 2013.
successfully towed to their intended positions Yuhei Sato, the governor of Fukushima
off the coast of Fukushima and positioned Prefecture who attended the opening ceremony,
approximately 2 km from each other. The said, I see floating offshore wind power as a
undersea cable was then connected, allowing symbol of the future. The projects aims extend
the operational trials to commence. However, beyond research trials to include helping with
because of the numerous typhoons that passed the recovery of Fukushima by attracting new
through the region, they encountered difficulties industries based around renewable energy and
that prevented equipment adjustment from being creating employment. The requirements for
completed on schedule. achieving these goals include an increase in
Speaking about the collaboration between the generation capacity and an expansion in the scale Jun Kamoshida

companies that made up the consortium and that of activity.

had to deal with these difficulties, Jun Kamoshida It is thanks to the consortium participants
(Engineer, Switchgear Equipment Development and other parties involved that we have been
Section, Switchgear Design Department, Power able to achieve the results that we have from this
Systems Company, Hitachi, Ltd.) made the demonstration project. I would like to express my
following comment. heartfelt thanks, said Mr. Saeki.
It seemed like we were only able to get out to The substation is inscribed with the words
the floating platform to perform work about one Fukushima kizuna (Fukushima links), and the
day in 10. I worked on the design of the integrated floating platform for the downwind turbine with
monitoring system and network infrastructure Fukushima mirai (Fukushimas future). It might
for the entire facility. Because the facility included be said that the wind that turns the giant blades off
equipment from the various different suppliers, the coast of Fukushima is blowing from a future
there were cases when systems did not function that people are creating for themselves.
correctly. Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd. was

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