Orsted has welcomed Germany’s plans to consider adding up to 20GW of new offshore wind capacity by 2030, and called on the government to allow developers to build their own grid connections.
“It is certainly a good sign: 20GW would be a notable step in the right direction,” Orsted managing director for Germany Volker Malmen told reNEWS.
However, Malmen said industry would need to see legislation backing the target before making development plans. He also suggested even more capacity is needed.
“If we look at the target of 65% renewables in Germany by 2030, one could argue that even 20GW is not ambitious enough.”
Germany last week disappointed the offshore sector by passing legislation supporting 8GW of onshore wind and solar.
Lawmakers, however, said in a preliminary declaration accompanying the legislation that they would ask the country’s maritime authority to investigate the possibility of an extra 15GW to 20GW of offshore capacity by 2030.
Malmen said Orsted would also like to see an overhaul of Germany’s current auctioning system to allow developers to pursue new supply opportunities.
The current model, he said, was a “blocker for sector-coupling ambitions” that could, for example, help decarbonise the transport sector. There was a lot of untapped potential in storage and power-to-gas options, he added.
“Offshore wind can be used for more than power production,” Malmen said. “One key aspect would be for developers like us to have the right to build the grid connection ourselves.”