Representatives of the Lithuanian Port of Klaipeda visited the German Port of Mukran, which is a base used for the construction of offshore farms in the Baltic Sea.
The Port of Klaipeda wants to become a hub of resources needed for an offshore wind farm project in Lithuania. Accordingly, representatives of the Klaipeda port authority and Klaipeda’s Klasco shipping company visited the port of Mukran to see how to prepare the port for offshore wind energy development. The preparatory phase for the construction of a 700 MW wind farm in the Baltic Sea in Lithuania has already begun. Investors will be selected through a bidding process and the wind farm, located about 30 kilometers offshore, is expected to be built by 2030.
The Port of Klaipeda has already begun construction of the infrastructure needed for the offshore wind farm. In May 2022, Klaipeda Port Authority and Klasco signed an investment agreement for the development of port infrastructure necessary for the planned development of an offshore wind farm. Investment in the infrastructure of the Smeltė Peninsula could amount to about 27 million euros.
The Mukrain Port Authority discussed the technical challenges of the Mukran port, as well as the experience of cooperation between the port authority, private companies and maritime project partners.
Port Mukran is located on Germany’s largest island with an area of 430 hectares. The port has the shortest sea connections to Sweden, Denmark (Bornholm), Finland, Russia and the Baltic countries. Mukran is the only port in Central Europe that has tracks and handling facilities for Russian and Finnish gauges in addition to standard gauge. The port has undergone a major transformation in recent years and is increasingly becoming a service port for various new offshore wind projects.
