Poland is going ahead with its offshore wind build-out program by starting a competitive  process for an offshore wind seabed permit within 53.E1 area in the Polish Baltic Sea. RWE is in  the race and has submitted a bid for the up to 1.5-gigawatts (GW) site, located around  75 kilometres off the coast of Ustka. Based on RWE’s expertise in offshore wind development,  efficient project delivery, safe operation of similar offshore wind farms in Europe, the company  has developed a unique concept for this particular offshore area focusing inter alia on the efficient area co-usage.

According to Sven Utermöhlen, CEO Offshore Wind, RWE Renewables: “RWE is clearly committed to  contributing to the Polish energy transition by delivering the government’s offshore wind  build-out program. We are currently realising our first offshore project in the Polish Baltic Sea,  with F.E.W. Baltic II. And we are pleased to have submitted our bid for an offshore wind farm  named Freeboard I within 53.E1 area. We have proposed an integrated concept for this seabed  permit, based on our track record of more than 20 years in offshore wind. We are convinced  that our bid will be a blueprint for developing a new generation of offshore wind farms in the  Polish Baltic Sea.”

“Efficient implementation of new offshore projects off the Polish coast will bring our country  significantly closer to achieving the much-needed diversification of energy sources and would  increase the share of renewable energy in the energy mix, as set out in the Energy Policy of  Poland,” says Grzegorz Chodkowski, Vice President Offshore Development Poland at  RWE Renewables. “Based on our experience in offshore wind and our close cooperation with  local communities and supply chain companies we are in a perfect position to deliver large scale offshore wind farms, which takes inter alia efficient area co-usage into account. And we  are ready to compete for other additional seabed permits in the Polish Baltic Sea.” 

For many years, RWE has been driving forward the Polish energy transition by developing,  building and operating onshore wind farms. With its portfolio RWE is among the five largest  Polish onshore wind operators. In addition RWE is continuously diversifying its Polish renewables  portfolio by investing in solar projects. 

Furthermore RWE is progressing with realising F.E.W. Baltic II, one of the first offshore wind  farms in the Polish Baltic Sea. Once fully operational, the 350 megawatts (MW) wind farm will be  capable of producing enough green electricity to supply the equivalent needs of around  350,000 Polish households. Through the F.E.W. Baltic II project, RWE will contribute significantly  to the local economy – one of its strategic growth markets in Europe. To contribute further, RWE  is also ready to place very competitive bids for the other additional areas made available for  offshore wind farms by the Polish government. Awarded seabed permits out of this process have the chance to qualify and participate in Contract for Difference (CfD) auctions starting in  2025.

Extensive experience in offshore wind 

RWE is a leading global player in renewables and No. 2 worldwide in offshore wind. RWE is  determined to contribute its global expertise and technical know-how to forge ahead with  offshore wind in Poland. RWE operates 18 offshore wind farms in five countries – including Arkona, with 385 MW one of the largest offshore wind farms in the German Baltic Sea. The  company currently has a total installed capacity of around 3 GW of offshore wind projects in  operation, the wind farms Sofia (1.4 GW off the British coast) and Kaskasi (342 MW off the  German coast) under construction, and a total of more than 10 GW secured capacities in development worldwide. 

Source: RWE