The Transmission System Operators (TSOs) of eight countries bordering the Baltic Sea – Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden – have launched the Baltic Offshore Grid Initiative (BOGI). The aim is to develop a joint roadmap leading to expanded generation of wind power in the Baltic Sea and its efficient transmission to respective markets, with increased cross-border co-operation.
The eight TSOs of the Baltic Sea are: 50Hertz (Germany); AST (Latvia); elering (Estonia); Energinet (Denmark); Fingrid (Finland); Litgrid (Lithuania); PSE (Poland); and Svenska Kraftnät (Sweden).
An “expert-paper” on BOGI (baltic-offshore-grid-initiative-expert_paper-2025.pdf) was presented at a ministerial meeting of the Baltic Energy Market Interconnection Plan (BEMIP) in Warsaw earlier this year.
It is estimated that future potential for wind power capacity in the Baltic Sea is around 93 GW compared to less than 5 GW installed capacity today, “but the regulatory and economic prerequisites are still lacking to jointly tap this potential.” The expert-paper is intended to provide an impetus.
The expert-paper follows on from the Vilnius Declaration, which was signed by the governments of the Baltic Sea region in April 2024 and was linked to a clear mandate for the TSOs to strengthen regional co-operation. At that time, the Baltic Sea countries had set an offshore generating capacity of 26.7 GW by 2030 as a target, and almost 45 GW by 2040.
The Baltic Sea grid map, included in the expert-paper, shows currently known cross-border electricity and hydrogen projects in the region expected to enter operation in the period up to around 2040.
The Baltic Sea, with its diverse wind profiles and relatively less dense placement of offshore wind farms, presents a favourable environment for offshore wind deployment, and development of the related infrastructure, the expert-paper suggests.
Wake effects are expected to be low.
Long-distance ‘hybrid’ interconnectors can level out local variations in wind power generation (‘hybrid’ denoting connection to national transmission systems as well as offshore wind farms). Offshore wind infeed into the grid from diverse and distant locations is “more ‘valuable’ for the energy system than connecting a huge amount in one place.”
According to the expert-paper, TSOs across the Baltic region are exploring innovative approaches that can reduce grid investment needs and optimise resource utilisation, such as cross-border radial connections and the co-location of offshore power generation with energy demand, such as hydrogen production via electrolysis.
The expert-paper argues that with rising project costs and more dispersed project benefits across EU Member States, the financing and cost sharing of offshore hybrid infrastructure projects in particular could be aided by regional planning and new funding mechanisms. Historical success stories, such as Nordel, an organisation formed in 1963 to further co-operation between Nordic TSOs, provide valuable insights into effective regional collaboration and the importance of strong political buy-in, the expert-paper says.
The expert-paper recommends that the Baltic Sea TSOs could address supply chain challenges by collaborating with manufacturers and suppliers, by providing clear asset need forecasts, standardising technical requirements, and enabling early engagement to streamline processes.
