A huge wind turbine built in the Pacific Ocean near Tokyo, the largest of its kind in Japan, began to generate power Monday.
The 126-meter-high turbine mast, with three propellers forming a spinning diameter of 92 meters, is located about 3 km off Choshi, Chiba Prefecture, and is capable of generating around 2,400 kw, with electricity to be transmitted onshore through underwater cables.
Tokyo Electric Power Co. and the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization are running the facility at a time when the government intends to expand the use of renewable energies to replace nuclear power in light of the Fukushima plant disaster.
NEDO will collect necessary data to optimize power generation and Tepco will supply the generated electricity, which is expected to cover the needs of 1,200 households.
Many countries have been building offshore turbines as they can utilize wind in a more stable manner than onshore ones and do not pose noise problems.
