The Dutch government has officially launched a 4GW offshore wind tender, which is being administered by Owind.
It will grant two permits in the first quarter of 2024, comprising a permit for plot Alpha (2GW) and a permit for plot Beta (2GW).
The plots form part of the IJmuiden Ver wind farm area in the North Sea, with the third plot (2GW) within the area open for tender in 2025.
Interested developers can submit an application for these lots from today, Thursday, 29 February until 28 March 2024.
The application with the highest score will receive a permit.
Several criteria will be taken into consideration when applications are considered.
These include the financial offer and developer’s ability to deliver the wind farm, the extent to which developers take circularity into account in their proposal and environmental impact.
There is an additional criteria for the site Alpha, in terms of how the wind farm “contributes to the ecosystem of the Dutch North Sea”.
For Beta, the additional criteria consists of how the wind farm can integrate within the Dutch energy system as well as measurements that contribute to reducing porpoise disturbance days in the construction phase of the project.
The IJmuiden Ver wind farm area is located 62km off the west coast of the Netherlands.
The three plots total 6GW and the total area of the three plots in the wind farm area (including the maintenance and safety zones) is approximately 650 square kilometres.
Grid operator TenneT will install three platforms with three grid connections in the area, which will each have a 2GW direct current connection to the network on shore.