The Danish Energy Agency (DEA) has extended the electricity production permit for the 23 MW Samsø offshore wind farm by ten years, the first such extension for an older offshore wind farm in Denmark.
The electricity production permit for the Samsø offshore wind farm, built in 2002, was limited to 25 years. However, the owner, Wind Estate, applied for an extension and has now been granted approval to continue operating the wind farm until 2037.
The project features ten wind turbines and can produce enough renewable energy to power 20,000-25,000 households.
Wind Estate submitted an independent analysis of Samsø’s remaining service life to support DEA’s decision. The company is also required to carry out extended annual inspections once the project is over 20 years old.
“With this decision, Samsø Offshore Wind Farm can continue to produce green electricity rather than being dismantled and decommissioned. It is gratifying for the green transition and sustainable from a resource perspective, as long as the plant can continue to operate in a responsible manner ,” said Stig Uffe Pedersen , Deputy Director of the Danish Energy Agency.
The DEA added that it is currently processing applications for the extension of the electricity permit for the 40 MW Middelgrunden , the 17.2 MW Rønland , the 161 MW Nysted , and the 160 MW Horns Rev 1 offshore wind farms.
“This is the first time that the Danish Energy Agency has taken a position on whether an existing offshore wind farm can have its electricity production permit extended, and it provides perspectives for similar projects with offshore wind in Denmark. There are several older offshore wind farms around Denmark that are also approaching their final expiration date. In the coming time, the Danish Energy Agency will assess whether those wind farms can also continue to operate responsibly,” said Pedersen .
Additionally, the agency has used an EU Emergency Regulation to speed up the permitting process by allowing projects to skip protection assessments. According to the DEA, the authority must use existing data to apply suitable and balanced measures that protect species according to the EU nature protection rules.
The DEA has required that wind turbines must stop or rotate slowly after sunset when the wind speed is below 6 m/s, during the period from 1 April to 31 October, to protect bats.