GE is in advanced talks over an offshore wind tie-up with Toshiba that would cover Japan and other Asian markets, according to reports from Tokyo.

The US group – whose GE Renewable Energy unit is among the world leaders in offshore turbine technology – and Japanese conglomerate could reach an agreement to work together in the sector as soon as next month, said Japan’s Kyodo news agency and Nikkei, citing unidentified sources with knowledge of the matter.

The two companies have been discussing joint production of nacelles, and potential cooperation in O&M for offshore wind, in Japan and elsewhere in Asia, Kyodo claimed. Nikkei reported that a Toshiba plant in Yokohama would be used to make nacelles under the arrangement.

A spokesperson for GE Renewable Energy told Recharge: “We do not comment on rumours and speculation”.

GE Renewable Energy produces the Haliade-X turbine, which with a rating up to 14MW is among the most powerful on the planet and has already won deals for huge offshore wind projects in Europe and the US, including the 3.6GW Dogger Bank off the UK that is the world’s largest single development.

Recharge reported late in 2020 how Toshiba was seeking a “strong partner” in offshore wind that can help it compete in Japan’s fast-emerging market.

Toshiba CEO Nobuaki Kurumatani said then that wind would be a “new area of focus” adding to the group’s existing solar and hydropower operations, as it sets out to triple the size of its renewable energy business within 10 years from revenues of 190bn yen ($1.8bn) in 2019 to 650bn yen in 2030.

Japanese ambition

Toshiba’s role in the wind equipment market has been relatively low key in global terms. The last major announcement in the sector by its Toshiba Energy Systems and Solutions (ESS) unit was a 2018 partnership with the now-insolvent German turbine OEM Senvion to install the latter’s turbines in Japan. Earlier in 2020 Toshiba sold its stake in the South Korean wind OEM Unison.

Overseas equipment suppliers are keen to enter a Japanese offshore wind sector that aims to reach up to 45GW by 2040 from a standing start now, and has already launched an auction programme that aims to spur 1GW a year for the rest of this decade. Japan is targeting at least 60% of local content to be supplied to the sector.

GE’s rival Vestas has agreed a joint venture in Japanese wind power with its long-term partner Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, while global market-leader Siemens Gamesa also has big ambitions in the sector there.

Japan is one of a clutch of Asian markets outside China that are tipped to see steep offshore wind growth. As well as early pacesetter Taiwan, Vietnam and South Korea are both seen as highly promising markets.

Note: Updates earlier version with GE reaction.

Wind

GE in offshore wind alliance talks with Japanese giant Toshiba: reports