Finnish developer Tahkoluoto Offshore will proceed with the development of the 600MW Tahkoluoto offshore wind farm extension project without a two-turbine demonstration phase.
The demo phase was discontinued due to time restrictions of the investment grant as well as uncertainty in property taxation of offshore wind production in Finland.
This change will not affect the scope and timeframe of the extension project itself.
The Tahkoluoto offshore wind farm extension project will comprise 40 turbines of 15–20MW.
The extension project will be built on the west coast of Finland, some 4–22 kilometres from the coastline and at a depth of 15–45 metres.
The project is expected to be built in 2027–2029.
The purpose of the demo phase was to pilot large-scale offshore wind turbines, foundation concepts and construction methods for deep waters (15–45 metres), and was expected to entail the construction of two 15MW turbines.
The demonstration project received a grant of €30m from the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment in Finland.
The project was ready for investment decision when it had to be discontinued due to changes in delivery schedules.
“The grant received from the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment in Finland set a deadline for the completion of the demo phase, and changes in delivery schedules would have negated the grant.
“In the current market situation, cost pressure is high, and there is considerable uncertainty over property taxation of offshore wind in Finland.
“In this context, risks for the investment became too high,” said Toni Sulameri, managing director of Tahkoluoto Offshore.
The investment decision for the extension project is scheduled for the end of 2026, with construction phase taking place from 2027 until 2029.
The Tahkoluoto offshore wind farm, comprising of 11 turbines, is Finland’s first offshore wind farm and the only one in the world operating in frozen sea conditions.
It is owned by Suomen Hyotytuuli.