Highlights of the Month: April 2017

Germany Accepts First Subsidy-Free Offshore Wind Bid

Germany’s Bundesnetzagentur has selected three offshore wind projects by DONG Energy and one project by EnBW in the first auction for grid connections and funding for existing offshore wind farm projects, with at least one of the developers offering the lowest price bid of 0.00 Euro cents per kilowatt-hour.

Siemens Wind Power CEO to Head Siemens-Gamesa Offshore Business

Markus Tacke, previously CEO of Siemens Wind Power, will head the Offshore business at the new company established by Siemens and Gamesa – Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy.

EnBW Wins Construction of 900MW German OWF by Bidding EUR 0/MWh

EnBW has been awarded the rights to develop its 900MW He Dreiht offshore wind farm by placing a bid for the construction of the project without subsidies at the first competitive tender in Germany.

DONG Explains the Thinking Behind Subsidy-Free Bids

DONG Energy has revealed the factors behind the decision to place two zero subsidy bids in the first round of offshore wind auctions in Germany.

Portuguese Company Ramping Up for Offshore Wind

Portugal-based ASM Energia is reportedly planning on increasing its involvement in the offshore wind sector and has chosen the port of Aveiro as a location for its new EUR 25 million plant that would accommodate the production of foundations.

Belgium Starts Building Rentel Offshore Wind Farm

Only a few days after the final turbine was installed at the Nobelwind offshore wind farm in Belgium, works on setting up a further array of wind turbines in the Belgian part of the North Sea started. Namely, the construction of the Rentel offshore wind farm has begun, according to the project’s social media pages.

Hammer Time on Merkur Offshore Wind Farm

GeoSea has installed the first of 66 monopiles on the 396MW Merkur offshore wind farm in the German North Sea.

GE Rolls Out First Merkur OWF Nacelle

The first out of the total of 66 GE Haliade 6MW nacelles for the Merkur offshore wind farm has recently left the manufacturer’s assembly line in France, GE Renewable Energy reported on 5 April.

E.ON to Invest in Airborne Wind Tech Demo Site. Teams Up with Ampyx Power

E.ON has announced that it will invest in the development of a demonstration site for airborne wind technology in County Mayo in Ireland, and that it entered into a collaboration agreement with Ampyx Power as the first user of the test site.

Belgium Considers Hitting Offshore Wind Reset Button

Belgium’s Secretary for the North Sea Philippe De Backer has suggested that the government should revoke concessions granted to three offshore wind projects and instead carry out a tendering procedure similar to those in Germany, Denmark or the Netherlands, according to local media.