Japan’s missing piece of clean power

This report by Ember analyzes Japan's electricity sector, arguing that the country's reluctance to expand wind power, particularly offshore wind, prevents it from achieving a decarbonised power sector and hinders the collective ambitions of the G7.

• Japan has the lowest share of clean electricity among G7 nations, with only 29% from clean sources and 71% from fossil fuels in 2022. It also maintains the highest share of coal generation in the G7 at 33%.
• Wind power is a significant gap in Japan's energy mix; in 2022, it generated less than 1% of the country's electricity, compared to an 11% average for the rest of the G7. In contrast, other G7 nations like the United Kingdom, Germany, and the United States saw wind account for more than 10% or 20% of their generation.
• Japan's 6th Strategic Energy Plan targets 59% clean power by 2030, with wind expected to provide only 5%. This plan includes 5.7 GW of offshore wind capacity, which represents just over 1% of the 392 GW theoretical potential estimated by Japan’s Ministry of the Environment.
• Two alternative pathways suggest Japan could achieve a predominantly decarbonised power sector by 2035. The Berkeley Lab report forecasts 90% decarbonisation, with offshore wind potentially supplying 18% of electricity, while the Renewable Energy Institute (REI) forecasts 80% renewables, with offshore capacity reaching 25.4 GW by 2035.
• Japan's offshore wind targets are low relative to the G7's collective goal of 150 GW of new offshore wind by 2030. Japan's projected operational capacity of 5.7 GW by 2030 accounts for only 4% of the G7 total.

APA

Jones, D., Lee, U., & Rahmani, A. A. (2023). Japan’s missing piece of clean power. Ember. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/FINAL-Japans-missing-piece-of-clean-power-Ember.pdf

Chicago

Jones, Dave, Uni Lee, and Ardhi Arsala Rahmani. Japan’s missing piece of clean power. Ember, 2023. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/FINAL-Japans-missing-piece-of-clean-power-Ember.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Jones |first1=Dave |last2=Lee |first2=Uni |last3=Rahmani |first3=Ardhi Arsala |title=Japan’s missing piece of clean power |publisher=Ember |date=18 May 2023 |url=https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/FINAL-Japans-missing-piece-of-clean-power-Ember.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{jones2023japans, author = {Jones, Dave and Lee, Uni and Rahmani, Ardhi Arsala}, title = {{Japan’s missing piece of clean power}}, institution = {Ember}, year = {2023}, month = may, url = {https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/10/FINAL-Japans-missing-piece-of-clean-power-Ember.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }