How wind power grew in Japan
The oil crisis of 1973 and 1974 led to the Sunshine Project, which took in wind research, and the Japan Wind Energy Association was founded in 1977. Japan's first wind farm was Tappi in Aomori. Tohoku Electric started five 275 kW Mitsubishi Heavy Industries turbines there in March 1992, and five 300 kW units followed in 1994. It was a demonstration and was removed in April 2008.
A renewable portfolio standard took effect in April 2003, and a feed-in tariff replaced it in July 2012. Growth stayed modest, and Japan's large turbine makers, including Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Hitachi, are now listed as former makers. Offshore plans suffered in August 2025. A Mitsubishi-led group withdrew from 1.76 GW it had won in the first offshore round, after construction costs more than doubled. The government plans to tender all three of those sea areas again under new rules.
Japan had 6,434 MW of wind and 2,866 turbines at the end of 2025. Wind generated 12.8 TWh in 2025, only 1.25% of electricity. Hokkaido, Aomori and Akita hold the most capacity. The Seventh Strategic Energy Plan, of 2025, puts wind at 4% to 8% of generation in 2040. That would need a three- to six-fold rise in wind's share.
Sources: NEDO · NEDO · Daiwa Institute of Research · Eco-Business · MLIT · JWPA · Ember · Energy Tracker Asia
Where Japan's power comes from, 2025
| Source | Share of electricity |
|---|---|
| Gas | 32.8% |
| Coal | 32.0% |
| Solar | 9.8% |
| Nuclear | 9.1% |
| Hydro | 7.2% |
| Bioenergy | 5.3% |
| Other fossil fuels | 2.5% |
| Wind | 1.2% |
Wind farms in Japan
We track 340 wind farms in Japan: 6.3 GW operating and 42.0 GW under construction, consented or planned, with 37.6 GW of it offshore. Each one's owners, turbines and status are in the Wind app.
Electricity data: Ember yearly electricity data (CC BY 4.0). Wind farms: national registers and Global Energy Monitor; see data sources.
Every renewable explained: Wind · Solar · Hydro · Bioenergy · Geothermal · Marine. Renewables in every country.