50Hertz opens tender for Gennaker export cable route planning

50Hertz, German transmission system operator (TSO) in charge of offshore grid connections in the Baltic Sea, has opened a tender for the planning of the route for the subsea cable of the OST-6-1 grid connection.

The OST-6-1 offshore grid project will connect the 927 MW Gennaker offshore wind farm, being developed by WPD.

The planning of the offshore route, which extends over approximately 130 kilometres, will be commissioned in the first quarter of 2023 and should be completed with the submission of the application for planning approval a year later. 

The contract could include an option for two additional cable systems in the course of the planning work: HPB2 (DC 700 MW) and Spinnaker (AC 300 MW).

The current plan is to connect all three systems by the fourth quarter of 2026, according to the call for tenders from 50Hertz.

The tender is open until 26 September, and the contract awarded under this procedure will be in effect from 26 February 2023 until 31 December 2025.

WPD started the realisation of the Gennaker offshore wind farm last month by placing a conditional order for 103 Siemens Gamesa 9 MW offshore wind turbines and starting the soil investigation work at wind turbine locations.

In July, the company said that procurement of other components and work, including that for the grid connection, would start in the coming weeks and months.

The installation of the wind turbines and the commissioning of the offshore wind farm is expected to be completed in 2026.