Renewable energy expansion, countries compete Global trend accounts for 80% of power supply
The UK is growing its offshore wind capacity
Renewable energy that Japan should expand its introduction to cover 70% of its power generation in the future. The UK and Germany, which are leading countries, have already reached 40-50% renewable energy ratio. The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that more than 80% of the world's electricity needs to be supplied by renewable energy in the scenario of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
It was only after the accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company's Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station in 2011 that Japan began to expand renewable energy. The ratio of renewable energy in 2021 is about 20%, but nearly 10% of the total will be hydroelectric power, which was originally there, and most of the expansion will be solar power.
Offshore wind power is the leading renewable energy source in the world, and China has already introduced about 26.3 million kilowatts by the end of 2021, and Europe has also introduced about 27.8 million kilowatts. Japan is almost "zero". A single offshore wind project can generate more than 1 million kilowatts of power. Due to the direction of the wind, it is not possible to generate power all the time, but the power generation capacity is equivalent to that of a single nuclear power plant.
In Japan, a consortium of companies including Mitsubishi Corporation plans to operate an offshore wind farm with a capacity of about 800,000 kilowatts by 2030 off the coast of Yurihonjo City, Akita Prefecture. However, to expand further, strong government involvement will be important.
One is to further expand the sea area where private companies can develop offshore wind power. A system in which the national and local governments are responsible for coordinating business operators and local residents is also indispensable. It will be necessary to introduce a "central system" in which the national government takes the lead in environmental assessments and coordination of connections to power grids.
The power grid also faces many challenges. When the Great East Japan Earthquake struck, there was a power shortage in the Tokyo metropolitan area and other areas, revealing the fragility of different frequency converters in the east and west. Although efforts have been made to reinforce the power transmission lines, the capacity of the transmission lines that exchange electricity between the east and west remains at 2.1 million kilowatts. In March and June, it was one of the reasons for the tight supply and demand of electricity.
According to a plan compiled in 2021 by the Organization for Cross-regional Coordination of Transmission Operators (OCTO), an investment of up to 4.8 trillion yen is required to increase the capacity of transmission lines connecting regions by more than 1.7 times the current capacity. In Japan, huge costs have been a barrier to expansion, but the situation is different overseas.
"Speaking of submarine transmission lines, it is a very popular asset management destination in Europe. Japan should also create a similar scheme." A person in charge of a major domestic financial institution participating in a study group on submarine power transmission lines by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said,
In the east of England, the first undersea transmission line "Neuconnect" project to connect with Germany is underway. It has been in operation for 28 years and has a total length of 720 kilometers. A maximum of 1.4 million kilowatts can be exchanged between the two countries, and it will also play a role in adjusting the fluctuation of offshore wind power generation. Japanese megabanks and Nippon Life Insurance will also make investments and loans.
In Europe, there is a system that guarantees income for transmission network operators, making it easy to commercialize. In many cases, business operators who want to increase renewable energy, rather than electric power companies, are the operating bodies.
Renewable energy generation is unstable due to the weather, so supply and demand adjustment using storage batteries is a key to expanding the introduction of renewable energy. The introduction cost of storage batteries is still high, and if we take the lead in technological development, it could be a business opportunity. Expansion of renewable energy not only raises the self-sufficiency rate and establishes energy security, but also leads to economic growth through increased investment, including storage batteries.
