Offshore wind power: Area development for 60 gigawatts gets underway
The Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency has presented the draft for area development planning in the North Sea up to 2037.
Installation in the North Sea at the alpha ventus test field.
(Image: Doti / Matthias Ibeler)
The Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) has published a draft area development plan (FEP) for the expansion of German offshore wind energy. For the first time, areas for the expansion of offshore wind energy are to be defined for a capacity of 60 GW by 2037. The corresponding environmental reports are also included.
(Image: BSH)
With the current update of the FEP, acceleration areas are also to be designated, which are to benefit from the simplified and accelerated procedures of the EU Renewable Energy Directive. Authorities have until July 8, 2024 and the public until August 8, 2024 to comment on the draft FEP, the BSH announced.
"With the draft area development plan, we are focusing on an accelerated expansion path up to 2035; we are exceeding the statutory target by 10 GW," said BSH President Helge Heegewaldt. At the same time, the draft plan outlines for the first time the area with which the target of at least 70 GW of offshore wind energy can be achieved.
Agreements with Denmark and the Netherlands
It is essential to use areas in the area of the SN10 shipping route, which centrally crosses the German Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). To this end, the BSH and other German authorities have exchanged information with Denmark and the Netherlands. The aim was to gain additional space for the national offshore expansion targets while ensuring the safety and ease of international shipping. "With the plan presented, we have succeeded in identifying additional areas for wind energy of well over 10 GW thanks to the new structuring of the shipping routes," explained Heegewaldt.
However, the designation of the acceleration areas is still subject to reservations. A bill passed by the German government at the end of March, which is intended to implement the EU directive, must first pass the parliamentary process. Dr. Nico Nolte, Head of the "Marine Order" department at the BSH, explains how the BSH plans to implement the regulations adopted by the Federal Cabinet for the current legislative process. "By integrating the implementation of the EU Renewable Energy Directive into the current update of the area development plan, the BSH is keeping up the pace of implementing the offshore targets."
(anw)
