The UK and Japan have signed an Offshore Wind Industrial Compact to strengthen cooperation on fixed-bottom, floating and deepwater offshore wind, with a focus on joint investment, technology demonstration and supply chain development.
The agreement was signed on 10 November by Michael Shanks, the UK's Minister of State for Energy, and Takagi Kei, Japan's State Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry.
The compact sets out four areas for cooperation, including co-investment in offshore wind projects in both countries, testing and demonstration of floating and deepwater technologies, development of resilient supply chains, and the exchange of expertise on offshore wind policy and regulatory frameworks.
Under the investment pillar, the two governments will encourage further joint initiatives involving UK developers, Great British Energy, Japanese developers and financial institutions. The cooperation is planned to support project deployment, reduce costs and strengthen industrial delivery, particularly for floating and deepwater offshore wind.
The countries will also explore collaboration on testing and demonstration activities, including the development of floating wind foundations and other enabling systems. This will involve building on existing cooperation between Japan's Floating Offshore Wind Technology Research Association (FLOWRA) and the UK's Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult (ORE Catapult), as well as exploring work on subsea engineering, robotics and digitalisation.
Supply chain cooperation will focus on developing secure and diversified sources of equipment and components, particularly wind turbines. The two sides will also support efforts to adapt fixed-bottom offshore wind technologies for floating applications.
The fourth pillar covers the exchange of UK expertise to support the development of Japan's offshore wind market. Areas identified for cooperation include project financing and market frameworks, regulation and standards, grid operation and system integration, and skills development and certification.
The compact follows the UK-Japan Memorandum of Cooperation signed on 7 March 2025 by the UK's Department for Business and Trade and Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, and Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI). That agreement established a framework for bilateral cooperation on offshore wind deployment, supply chains, investment and floating wind technology development.
Since then, the two countries have held public-private workshops on auction systems and testing facilities, while Japanese companies have participated in UK floating wind projects in the sixth and seventh contracts for difference (CfD) allocation rounds. The establishment of JERA Nex BP is also cited in the new compact as an example of commercial cooperation between the two markets.
Implementation of the industrial compact will be led by Great British Energy and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero on the UK side, and METI on the Japanese side. The framework provides for annual director-level discussions, including through the UK-Japan Energy and Climate Dialogue.