On 15 March 2023, the Danish Energy Agency issues permit to the Danish TSO, Energinet, regarding initiation of preliminary site investigations for future offshore wind farms in the Nordsøen I-area in the North Sea.

The site investigations will be initiated in Q2 2023 and will cover geophysical and geotechnical studies of the areas designated for potential offshore wind farms and possible cable corridors, as well as marine biological studies to be carried out in the surrounding areas.

With this permit, Energinet can gather relevant data concerning the identified sites. This data will contribute to mitigating risks for potential developers. A developer will also be able to use the results of the preliminary site investigations for the environmental impact assessment (EIA), which any concrete plans for establishing an OWF will have to undergo at a later stage. The issued permit does not grant rights to establish offshore wind farms in the area.

Faster development of offshore wind towards 2030

In Denmark, preliminary site investigations have traditionally been initiated based on a political agreement designating a specific sites for OWF development. However, Energinet’s preliminary site investigation for the Nordsøen I-area is being initiated prior to political agreements designating this site for OWFs. This is a result of a decision of the Climate Agreement on Green Power and Heat 2022 to initiate preliminary site investigations for all identified suitable OWF sites in order to fulfill the ambitions of more offshore wind by 2030.

About offshore wind farms in the Nordsøen I-area

• With the Danish Finance Act for 2022 it was decided to add 2 GW to the target capacity set by the Energy Agreement of 29 June 2018.
• The Danish Energy Agency identified attractive offshore wind sites through the screening report on suitable marine areas that was published on 11 May 2022.
• With the Climate Agreement on Green Power and Heat 2022 it was decided that an additional 4 GW offshore wind should be commissioned by the end of 2030. It was further decided decision to initiate preliminary site investigations for sites identified in the screening, including Nordsøen I.

More on the screening report of 2022 here (in Danish only)

 

Nordsøen I OWFs. The orange polygon shows the area identified as potential OWF sites, and he surrounding shaded area constitutes the main scope of the site investigations, with the geotechnical investigations being limited to the orange area and marine biological studies to be carried out within the area marked with a dashed line. The dotted area constitutes the investigation area for the cable corridors. Grey polygons are existing or future OWFs.

Contact:

Special Advisor Alf Skovgaard, +45 33 95 51 62, alfsk@ens.dk