Federal network agency BNetzA has identified seven routes for future grid connections to be built by German transmission system operators (TSOs) for wind power in Germany as part of an environmental report on future grid requirements.
According to the environmental report published by the agency, the TSOs must plan the new power lines in these five to ten kilometre wide strips of land.
The preference area determination replaces the multi-year federal specialist planning procedures and are determined in parallel with the needs assessment, the agency said.
This means that a finished preference area is already available when the network connection points are determined in the Federal Requirements Plan, it added.
The plan approval can follow immediately.
The Federal Network Agency has for the first time identified preference areas for the large underground cable projects NordOstLink (DC31/DC32), Rhein-Main-Link (DC34, DC35, NOR-x-8 and NOR-x-4), NordWestLink (DC41) and SuedWestLink (DC42/DC42plus) required to transport wind power.
It then used these as the basis for the strategic environmental assessment of the Federal Requirements Plan as investigation areas.
Preference areas are strips of land approximately five to ten kilometres wide between the start and end point of a project.
Within these strips, the exact route of the line will be determined during the subsequent planning approval process.
For the OstWestLink (DC40/DC40plus) underground cable connection, which is also planned, the determination of preference areas could not be completed due to unforeseeable changes to the plan, the agency said.
It is intended to create a legal basis for a possible subsequent determination of the affected preference areas in the near future.