Germany’s plans to exploit its wind resources have been given a boost by plans for the construction of a major offshore project in the North Sea.
Oldenburg-based utility EWE and the Enova Group have created a new company tasked with building and operating the project, which will cost around EUR480 million.
The Riffgat project will consist of up to 44 turbines, probably rated at 2.5 MW, installed 15 km to the north-west of the East Frisian island of Borkum in the German North Sea. Its development is a major milestone for the country’s offshore wind sector, which is still in its infancy.
EWE says that it is waiting to receive final approval consent for the project, but hopes to start construction in 2011. The project is scheduled to start operating at the end of 2012..
While Germany has one of the largest onshore wind markets in Europe, it has yet to complete construction of a large-scale offshore project. At the end of October German wind turbine manufacturer Bard Group began operation of the country’s first offshore wind turbine at Hooksiel.
EWE is also working with E.On on the construction of Alpha Ventus, a 60 MW offshore wind farm that is due to start operating in 2009. Germany is expected to have around 500 MW of installed offshore capacity by 2010, according to the German Wind Energy Association.
“Electricity from offshore wind turbines will form a central part of the energy mix of the future. By building the Riffgat offshore wind park, we are continuing with our commitment to electricity generated offshore,” said Dr. Thomas Neuber, EWE’s Director of Procurement and Production.
Neuber adds: “Riffgat will reap the benefits of our pioneering Alpha Ventus work. We will contribute our experience and expertise in the field of offshore wind energy to the joint venture and further it to the best of our abilities.”
Bard Group has installed a 5 MW VM-type training and demonstration wind energy converter in the outer Jade Estuary off Hooksiel, approximately 500 m from the shore. It is now working on plans to install 80 such units 100 km off the coast of Borkum to form the Bard Offshore 1 project.
Planning approval for Bard Offshore 1 has already been granted, and the project is scheduled to start operating in 2009, says Bard.
According to the German Wind Energy Association, more than 20 projects have been licensed in the North and Baltic Seas by the national maritime authority, with a combined capacity of around 5000 MW. The offshore sector also benefits in Germany from a 2006 law that requires the transmission system operators to meet the cost of connecting new offshore wind farms to the grid.
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