Orsted’s board of directors has taken final investment decision (FID) on the two German offshore wind farms Gode Wind 3 (242MW) and Borkum Riffgrund 3 (900MW) which are expected to be commissioned in 2024 and 2025 respectively.
Orsted head of region for continental Europe Rasmus Errboe said: “Borkum Riffgrund 3 is a landmark project, and we’re proud that Orsted is once again leading the way by being the first to take FID on a merchant offshore wind project in Germany.
“We’ve brought this project forward by signing several large-scale power purchase agreements with leading corporates, bringing in a partner for 50% of the wind farm, and procuring and installing Borkum Riffgrund 3 and Gode Wind 3 as one gigawatt-scale project.”
Orsted managing director in Germany Jörg Kubitza added: ‘With the decision to build Gode Wind 3 and Borkum Riffgrund 3, we’ll expand our German portfolio to six offshore wind farms and a total investment volume since 2012 of around €7.5bn.
“While Borkum Riffgrund 3 will be the biggest wind farm in Germany to date, gigawatt-scale wind farms should be the norm when planning future offshore wind buildout.
“Large-scale projects will be key to securing the green energy volumes needed to reach climate neutrality in Germany by 2045, an effort for which offshore wind remains the most suitable source of renewable energy.”
Orsted has signed PPAs on Borkum Riffgrund 3 for a total of 786MW with Covestro (100MW), Amazon (350MW), REWE Group (100MW), BASF (186MW), and Google (50MW) to support the final investment decision by creating a large degree of revenue certainty for Borkum Riffgrund 3.
On 19 October this year, Glennmont Partners acquired a 50% stake in Borkum Riffgrund 3.
The agreement with Glennmont was made subject to certain conditions precedent, including Orsted’s final investment decision.
With the final investment decision, project permit, merger clearance, and foreign investment clearance now in place, Orsted expects to complete the transaction no later than Q1 2022.