The Germany Bundesnetzagentur (BNetzA), the Federal Network Agency, has published an update regarding the 1,550 MW 2017 offshore wind projects call for tender. This is Germany's first offshore wind competitive auction and it has been set up under the framework of the new German Renewable Energies Act (EEG) 2017 and the Offshore Wind Act (WindSeeG). Feed-in-tariffs are replaced with competitive auctions so that wind energy deployment is limited in order to enable the local grid to catch up with the installation of new projects. This bid round was the first of its kind but German authorities plan to offer a further 1,550 MW in April 2018.
According to the BNetzA, the auction's average project surcharge value is 0.44 ct/kWh, a figure far below expectations according to the BNetzA. The highest bid proposed 6.0 ct/KWh. The invitation to tender has been launched in January 2017 and the deadline for the bid submission was 3 April. The selected projects are scheduled to go into operation after 31 December 2020.
EnBW won the lion's share in the auction round with the "He Dreiht" 900 MW project. This is a significant milestone for EnBW which currently operates 336 MW of offshore wind farms in Germany. The company plans to grow significantly in offshore wind and schedules the commissioning of the He Dreiht project in 2025.
Dong Energy won three offshore wind projects with a total capacity of 590 MW: the 240 MW OWP West, the 240 MW Borkum Riffgrund West 2 and the 110 MW Gode Wind 3 wind parks. All of them are located in the North Sea and are planned to be commissioned by 2024.
At the moment, Dong Energy already operates 3,600 MW of offshore wind across Germany, UK and Denmark of which 902 MW in Germany, namely with the Gode Wind 1 and 2 and the Borkum Riffgrund-1.
3,800 MW are under construction across Germany, UK and Denmark, of which notably the 450 MW Borkum Riffgrund-2 park in Germany, expected to be commissioned in 2019.
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