Iberdrola has partnered with Macquarie’s Green Investment Group (GIG) to develop the a 3600MW offshore wind portfolio comprising six fixed bottom and floating offshore wind farms.
The deal will see Iberdrola acquire Acacia Renewables, which has two offshore wind farms under development with a combined capacity of up to 1.2GW and a 2028 online target date, from GIG, and partner with GIG to complete the projects.
The Acacia Renewables platform also has four other projects in its pipeline, with a total capacity of 2.1GW.
Iberdrola will hold an equal share in the six projects alongside GIG, and the partners will develop the portfolio.
The operation is in line with the company’s strategy, said Iberdrola, allowing it to “position itself in the early development stage” of Japan’s offshore wind market, which has “strong growth potential”.
The deal gives Iberdrola access to a “diversified project pipeline”, located in different areas of the south-west of the country.
Acacia has a team experienced in the management of renewable projects and in-depth knowledge of the market, as well as offices in the country; critical conditions for leading the future development of new projects in Japan on its own, Iberdrola said.
Following the deal Acacia will focus on offshore wind while GIG is taking forwards its existing onshore wind development business.
Installed offshore wind capacity in Japan is currently around 70MW, but the country has deployed a strategy to decarbonise its energy mix and promote energy independence.
Forecasts indicate that the market will reach 10GW installed in 2030 and up to 37GW in 2050 (Japan Wind Association).
In the offshore wind sector, Iberdrola already operates wind farms in the UK and Germany, and the company is working on new developments in the UK, US, German and French markets and has a 15GW pipeline.