German TSO 50Hertz and the Danish grid operator Energinet have agreed to work together on a project to connect a 2GW Baltic Sea offshore energy island on Bornholm to both countries.
50Hertz CEO Stefan Kapferer (pictured) and Energinet CEO Thomas Egebo signed a memorandum of understanding for the Bornholm Energy Island project.
Kapferer said: “For Europe’s energy future, the seas surrounding us have a central importance.
“Together with our proven partner Energinet, we want to launch a new innovative project for the energy transition and climate protection.
“Not only are we making technological progress, but we also need to find new regulatory avenues for cross-border use and remuneration of the electricity generated, together with politicians and the offshore wind industry.”
The Bornholm Energy Island project would connect Germany and Denmark with an interconnector as a first development step.
Electricity from surrounding offshore wind farms would then be fed into the island of Bornholm, with connections to other Baltic Sea countries and offshore wind farms occurring over time.
According to Denmark’s previous plans, the wind farms will be built in the sea at a distance of about 20 km south and south-western of Bornholm and will be connected to the offshore hub on the island via sea cable.
The Danish Parliament has set a timeframe for 2030.
An advantage, compared with other planned offshore hubs in the North Sea, is that a natural island already exists in this project.
Egebo added: “The expansion of offshore wind energy is necessary to achieve the goals of the Paris climate agreement.
“Therefore, we now need to change gears from national expansion with individual wind farms to energy islands that can only be realised as transnational projects.”