TenneT records offshore wind power growth of more than 20 percent in North Sea
Clean Energy Wire
Dutch transmission grid operator TenneT recorded a more than 21 percent increase in offshore wind energy transmission from the North Sea to 11.51 terawatt hours (TWh) in the first half of 2020 compared to the same period last year, the company said. Power transmission from the North Sea accounted for approximately 15.6 percent of total wind power generation in Germany, which reached 73.7 TWh in the first six months of the year, the company said. “The expansion and integration of offshore wind energy is of central importance for the European energy transition,” said TenneT COO Tim Meyerjürgens. TenneT is investing more than 10 billion euros in a 525-kV direct current subsea cable system with a transmission capacity of 2 gigawatts (GW), aimed at creating a standardised system to facilitate connection projects in the Dutch and German North Sea regions. Overall, the grid operator has an investment programme of some 20 billion euros earmarked for connecting offshore wind energy in the Netherlands and Germany by 2030. With regard to hydrogen-related initiatives, Tennet said it had already included coupling power to gas/hydrogen in its proposals for North Sea wind power hubs.
Offshore wind power is a key component of Germany’s plan to produce 65 percent of its power from renewable sources in the next decade. The country has recently expanded its 2040 offshore capacity target to 40 gigawatts, and has just published a draft of possible new wind farm locations. But the industry faces many challenges, mainly due to environmental concerns and increasing costs as shallow, relatively easy-to-exploit sites are filled.
