A major milestone was achieved at Parkwind’s Arcadis Ost 1 offshore wind farm over the weekend when DEME Offshore installed its final XXL monopile in the Baltic Sea, off the coast of Rügen. This was the first project executed by DEME’s new floating installation vessel ‘Orion’, which installed the foundations [...]
On final reading on July 14, the Latvian Parliament approved amendments to the Energy Law and the Electricity Market Law prepared by the Ministry of Economics, contributing to strengthening Latvia’s energy security and independence. The new legislation will promote the development of RES, support energy efficiency and more active citizen [...]
The Estonian Parliament (Riigikogu) passed amendments to the Natural Gas Act and other related laws during one of the session. The amendments also provide new solutions for onshore and offshore wind power in Estonia. […]
On April 13, the Lithuanian government approved amendments to legislation drafted by the Ministry of Energy to accelerate the development of RES in Lithuania. The new legislation removes the bureaucracy and excessive restrictions on photovoltaic and wind power plants and encourages the formation of energy communities, the department says. [...]
The Swedish government has presented a package of solutions for accelerating the development of wind energy. Wind turbines for Sweden are intended to be a source of cheap and green electricity. The package consists of four decisions aimed at meeting increased electricity demand and strengthening Sweden’s energy security through wind [...]
Latvia plans to implement new regulations that will accelerate the pace of development of wind farm projects. The government’s plans were announced by the Minister of Environmental Protection and Regional Development, Artūrs Toms Plešs, during a press briefing on March 21. A special law will be drafted for this purpose. [...]
In the list of legislative works of the Polish government there appeared an announcement of a draft amendment of the Act on sea areas of the Republic of Poland and the maritime administration. The project assumes regulation of a situation of a tie in the resolving proceedings for applications for permits to build artificial [...]
Floating wind farms (so called “floating wind”) are one of the main directions of development of this sector. Also in the case of the Baltic Sea, investors more and more often indicate the potential lying in this technology, especially in places where due to the bottom characteristics and depth level the application of floating farms [...]
Estonian grid operator Elering and Latvian operator Augstsprieguma tīkls (AST) commissioned consulting firm BLIX to complete a four-level study that concludes that there are no obstacles to the healthy development of offshore wind in the Baltic Sea region. […]
Baltic Power, which is developing a joint offshore wind farm project of PKN Orlen and Northland Power, has announced a tender for an O&M contractor to support the offshore wind farm in the Baltic Sea. […]
The Swedish Wind Energy Association (Svensk Vindenergi) is positive about the government’s recent decision to develop offshore plans for the offshore wind sector. According to the organization, the level of ambition should be higher and the decision makers themselves should be mindful of technological advances. […]
The war in Ukraine, caused by Russia’s attack, has shown how damaging the toxic relationship between Europe and Russia is in the energy sector. The answer is REPowerEU – European Commission’s plan to make Europe independent from Russian fossil fuels by 2030. One of the pillars of action is RES investments. Offshore wind development, including [...]
ZE PAK, a Polish company associated with the coal-fired power sector in Poland, has ambitious plans to transform its portfolio towards green energy. The company also wants to get involved in the development of offshore wind energy in the Baltic Sea. The energy from wind turbines will be used to produce, among others, green hydrogen, [...]
ZE PAK, one of the leaders of Poland’s energy transition, and Ørsted, a leader of offshore wind energy, have signed an agreement and will jointly apply for location permits to build wind farms in the Polish part of the Baltic Sea. If they are successful, they will create a regional Fund for Just Transition in [...]
Elia Group has announced that it is expanding its international offshore transmission infrastructure business through a new subsidiary – WindGrid. Markus Laukamp will start as CEO on 1 April 2022. […]
On 1 March 2022, Poland's Council of Ministers adopted a resolution amending the offshore wind farm installation terminal regulations. Originally, the government wanted to carry out the investment in Gdynia, but eventually decided on Gdansk. The new resolution was submitted by the Ministry of Infrastructure. The installation terminal is to be built in the Port [...]
The Finnish town of Raahe has been identified as a suitable site for the industrial production of hydrogen (H2). A hydrogen pipeline is planned for the northern part of the Baltic Sea. The hydrogen itself could be produced using energy from renewable sources, including offshore wind power. […]
The Federal Association of German Wind Farm Operators Offshore (BWO) has referred to the latest industry results presented in a WindEurope report. – It is no longer news that surprises anyone. And yet it is always shocking to read in black and white where we are and where we want to go – where we [...]
German electricity system operator 50Hertz is currently focusing, among other things, on grid connections for large offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea and North Sea. 50Hertz wants to increase its connection capacity from current, around 1 GW, to more than 7 GW in 2030. […]
In the wake of Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine, the operators of the Baltic transmission systems – Augstsprieguma tīkls of Latvia, Litgrid of Lithuania, and Elering of Estonia – have agreed to limit the total capacity of electricity imports from Russia. […]
The procedure for participation in the Hansa PowerBridge submarine cable project was initiated for the continental shelf bilge in Germany’s exclusive economic zone in the Baltic Sea. […]
The cross-border environmental impact assessment consultation for the planned Baltic Offshore Beta offshore wind farm in the Swedish Exclusive Economic Zone in the Baltic Sea was open for participation until 28 February 2022. […]
The first three XXL monopiles for the Arcadis Ost 1 Offshore Wind Project have been completed and have set sail for the Port of Roenne, the Arcadis Ost 1 wind farm marshalling harbor. This is the first set of 28 monopile units (27 WTG, 1 OSS) that will be transported to Roenne over the next [...]
Swedish company Svea Vind Offshore AB intends to apply for a permit for the Gretas Klackar 1 offshore wind farm. As part of this process, it invites written consultation. […]
In the current tense geopolitical situation in the region, the development of local electricity generation becomes even more important not only for energy independence but also for national security, Lithuania’s Energy Ministry points out. Energy Minister Dainius Kreivys says, bearing in mind the growing demand for energy, that Lithuania needs to increase its domestic electricity [...]
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is progressing, and companies are beginning to take first steps toward abandoning relationships with Russian Federation entities. Offshore wind investors in Europe, including in the Baltic Sea region, are making their first statements in the area, amongst them are Norway’s Equinor and Denmark’s Ørsted. On BalticWind.EU we will observe investors’ actions [...]
The war in Ukraine, sparked by Russia’s invasion of the country, raises critical infrastructure protection issues. There is a growing number of wind farms in their inventory. The aggressor in the form of Russia also has influence in the Baltic Sea region. The growth of distributed energy sources increases the need for investment in systems [...]
PGE and Ørsted are jointly applying for the 45.E.1 area on Ławica Słupska. This area of 17 sq. km is directly adjacent to Baltica Offshore Wind Farm, the largest offshore wind farm under construction in the Polish Baltic Sea and one of the world’s largest offshore wind farms. The application to the Ministry of Infrastructure [...]
PGE Baltica will be advised by “ENERGOPROJEKT-KATOWICE” SA in the preparation of the purchase documentation and during the tender procedure for the general contractor for the onshore connection to the Baltica 2 and Baltica 3 offshore wind farms, informs PGE Baltica, a subsidiary of Poland’s largest power producer. […]
The Baltic Sea is becoming increasingly popular among foreign investors. The Baltic Sea is seen as a body of water offering opportunities for the development of offshore wind farms based on floating wind platforms. We ask Ocean Winds about their plans for the Baltic Sea. The company informed us that on 14 February 2022, ENGIE [...]
The fate of the offshore wind energy installation terminal in Poland has been in question for over a year. There was even a resolution on this issue in 2021, but in the list of legislation works of the Polish government a new resolution appeared, which this time locates the installation port in Poland in Gdansk, [...]
According to a recent report by European Wind Energy Association WindEurope, 17.4 GW of new wind energy capacity will be installed across Europe in 2021, bringing the total installed capacity to 236 GW (offshore and onshore). In the EU-27, 11 GW have been installed. Europe is only building half the wind power capacity needed to [...]
The Baltic Sea will be one of the European regions supporting the energy transformation of the European Union. Particular potential is seen in offshore wind energy, and Ignitis Group is interested in its development. We asked the company about specific plans. The company commentary was published in our quarterly report LITHUANIA Q4 2021. […]
Opponents and skeptics of wind energy development, particularly onshore, often have concerns about the impact of wind turbines noise on humans. Resistance to this is particularly found among local communities. Recent studies have not found wind turbine noise to be associated with disease or disease symptoms. […]
Siemens Gamesa announced the signature of two Preferred Supplier Agreements for the MFW Baltyk II and MFW Baltyk III wind power plants with Equinor and Polenergia. These signings represent both the first preferred supplier agreements announced in the fledgling Polish offshore wind market, and also the first conditional agreements for the SG 14-236 DD offshore [...]
TÜV SÜD and Tractebel DOC have signed an agreement announcing their intention to collaborate in the field of offshore wind energy towards a carbon-neutral future. The partnership will focus on joint project implementation and the development of new markets and services. With around 25,000 staff in over 50 countries, TÜV SÜD is among the world’s [...]
OX2 has submitted a permit application under the act of Sweden’s Exclusive Economic Zone to construct an offshore wind farm in the Swedish Economic Zone off the coast of Skåne in the south of Sweden. […]
The Baltic Sea needs port investments. By the end of the decade, 12.5 percent of the European offshore wind fleet could be located in this region, but it needs prepared service and installation ports. The port of Klaipeda has great aspirations too. Director-General of Klaipėda State Seaport Authority, Algis Latakas, commented for BalticWind.EU. […]
Poland's Vice-Minister for Infrastructure Marek Gróbarczyk has announced that Poland is launching further concession proceedings for three new sites in Polish waters of the Baltic Sea. As a result, localization procedures are currently underway for 9 marine areas. Vice-Minister Gróbaczyk tweeted that the ministry has "three more locations for the law on promoting electricity generation [...]
Lithuania has high hopes for the development of offshore wind energy in the Baltic Sea. The importance of this project is described to us by Rytis Kėvelaitis, Founder & CEO at Energy Unlimited. The interview was published in our quarterly report LITHUANIA Q4 2021 […]
The Ministry of Energy of Lithuania invites to participate in public consultations on the elements relevant for the environmental impact assessment of wind farms to be constructed in the Lithuanian part of the Baltic Sea. […]
The Parliament voted a few days ago on the report on the EU strategy for offshore renewable energy, prepared and adopted by the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy. The document was finally adopted. – Offshore wind energy needs “all hands on deck”. Firstly, it is about exploiting the potential of every European basin. I [...]
Baltic Power, a company that is a subsidiary of the PKN Orlen Group in Poland, has won a tender for the lease of land in the port of Łeba for an offshore wind farm in the Baltic Sea. A service port will be located in Łeba to service the investment, [...]
On Tuesday, February 15, Minister for Climate and Environment Annika Strandhäll and Minister for Energy and Digitalization Khashayar Farmanbar held a joint press conference. The meeting focused on accelerating offshore wind development and developing Sweden’s first offshore plans. […]
Today at a meeting of the European Parliament, MEPs adopted a strategy for the development of offshore energy in Europe. This is a watershed moment for the offshore wind industry. The document sets ambitious goals for the development of this industry in Europe. The report was approved by 518 votes [...]
During the February 2022 plenary session, Parliament voted on an own-initiative report on the EU offshore renewable energy strategy, as prepared and adopted by the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy. This constitutes Parliament’s response to the Commission’s strategy paper on the subject, adopted in November 2020 as part of [...]
While some developers in the wind energy sector have a lot of experience with onshore wind parks, they lack experience with offshore wind parks. For this reason, local companies cooperate with foreign companies in order to make the best use of local market knowledge and offshore wind industry experience – [...]
The next edition of the international conference WindMission Lithuania 2022 was held in January. The event was devoted to Lithuania’s energy policy, in particular to the development of wind energy. Here are the key findings on offshore wind development from Lithuania. […]
Today the European Commission published its new EU Guidelines on State Aid for Climate, Environmental Protection and Energy. The new Guidelines allow National Governments to hold technology specific auctions and endorse revenue stabilisation mechanisms notably 2-sided CfDs. These are pre-conditions for the accelerated deployment of wind energy towards climate neutrality. [...]
On 8 December, there will be a meeting of the Working Group for energy and climate of the CPMR Baltic Sea Commission. The topic of the meeting are the opportunities of offshore wind energy development in the Baltic region. We will be represented at the meeting by Paweł Wróbel, Managing [...]
Lithuania is preparing its regulatory framework for the development of offshore wind in its waters. And new proposed auction rules have recently emerged in the Lithuanian Parliament which will jeopardise the delivery of projects at the lowest cost for society – WindEurope indicates in the press release. […]
According to the latest analysis from independent think tank Rystad Energy, offshore wind expenses (CAPEX) are increasingly filling the gap left by investments in the oil and gas sector. By 2030, investments in the offshore wind market could surpass investments in the oil and gas sector in several key markets. [...]
The Offshore Coalition for Energy and Nature (OCEaN) is a coalition of wind farm operators, transmission systems and environmental organizations that provides an open forum for discussion. The German working group presented six recommendations for the nature-friendly development of offshore wind energy. […]
2021 turned out to be a breakthrough for the Polish offshore wind energy industry. The first legal regulations for the sector appeared, the Energy Regulatory Office granted support for five projects in the Baltic Sea. The industry in Poland is no longer asking whether offshore wind energy will be developed, [...]
What to do in case of emergency 100 meters up on an offshore wind turbine 100 kilometres out at sea? This was the scenario for an exercise held by EnBW at its Hohe See offshore wind farm. German developer EnBW operates four offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea and [...]
Vestas Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of Vestas Wind Systems, has invested in the unique Salamander Quick Lift Crane Technology to further strengthen its position as global leader in sustainable energy solutions and to reduce carbon emissions from its value chain. This new crane holds significant potential, both in [...]
The Lithuanian Ministry of Energy announced that on Wednesday, August 4, 2021, the government supported the ministry’s motion to adopt regulations supporting the development of offshore wind energy. The regulations concern the conditions for the main tender and the scope of the contest winner’s liability. […]
A public procurement notice for the construction of an Estonian-Latvian offshore wind farm in the Baltic Sea has appeared in the Estonian Public Procurement Register. The tender concerns the implementation of the ELWIND feasibility study. […]
Dutch MEP Peter van Dalen answers BalticWind.EU’s questions on cooperation between fishermen and emerging offshore wind industry. On July 7, 2021, Members of the European Parliament adopted a resolution on the impact of offshore wind farms and other renewable energy systems on the fisheries sector. […]