Seaway 7 and Sumitomo Making Subsea Cable One-Stop-Shop in Asia-Pacific

Sumitomo Electric Industries and Seaway 7 have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to together provide subsea cable engineering, procurement, installation, and commissioning (EPIC) services for offshore wind projects in Japan and the wider Asia-Pacific region.

The collaboration is planned to enable the provision of a unique service to meet the need for a one-stop-shop EPIC submarine cable solution for the regional offshore wind market.

Japan’s Sumitomo Electric will contribute with its knowledge of the regional market and experience in the design and manufacturing of submarine cables.

The Norwegian Seaway 7 will provide its installation services with a track record of completed submarine cable system projects for offshore renewables, oil and gas, and utility markets globally.

Stuart Fitzgerald, CEO of Seaway 7, said: “The intended partnership with Sumitomo Electric builds on our existing long-term business relationship and is aimed at introducing our combined expertise and capabilities into the emerging offshore wind market in Japan and the wider Asia-Pacific region, which is in high demand for competitive and reliable solutions.”

The Japanese government aims to deploy 10 GW of offshore wind capacity by 2030 and 30-45 GW by 2040, including floating wind, as part of its target to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

The country launched its third offshore wind auction in December 2021, seeking to select the developer of up to 356 MW of offshore wind capacity in the Happo-Noshiro zone off Akita prefecture.

Japan is expected to get its first commercial-scale offshore wind farm this year when the 140 MW Akita Noshiro project begins operations.