General – Grid Connection
German maritime authority BSH has given the green light to two offshore grid connection projects that will help deliver power from up to 1.2 GW of turbine capacity in the North Sea and Baltic Sea.
The planning approvals concern the 50Hertz’s 300MW Ostwind 3 project and the 900-MW DolWin4 proposed by Amprion, the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) said on Friday.
According to the federal agency, the schemes set a new standard for connecting offshore wind turbines, which deploys a 66-kV direct connection that does not require the construction of additional substation platforms within the offshore sites.
Both of them envisage the construction and operation of network connection systems and platforms in the German exclusive economic zones (EEZ).
Specifically, German transmission system operator (TSO) 50Hertz will install the Jasmund substation around 42 km off north-east Rugen, in the Baltic Sea, to be connected by a 100 km cable.
Power from nearby turbines will be fed directly into the substation platform, with operations expected to be launched in the autumn of 2026.
TSO Amprion, meanwhile, has obtained permission to build the DolWin Delta platform around 45 km north of Norderney in the North Sea. The facility will transmit electricity from wind farms in the area to the shore via a submarine cable system of some 60 km.
The grid connection system is due to be switched on by the autumn of 2028.
