Danes to start offshore wind site surveys for Baltic Sea energy island

The Danish Energy Agency (DEA) has given the green light to Energinet to start preliminary offshore investigations at the areas in the Baltic Sea where the country could build two offshore wind farms that would be connected to the planned energy island on Bornholm.

Based on the permit from the DEA, Energinet will deploy survey vessels in the Baltic Sea to investigate and survey the seabed in the feasibility study areas, where two offshore wind farms could be built. The Danish transmission system operator will also take a closer look at the wildlife in the areas.

Back in June 2020, Denmark approved the development of two energy islands, one in the North Sea and one in the Baltic Sea on Bornholm, with Energinet given the task of conducting the feasibility studies for both energy islands. 

The fact that the Danish Energy Agency (DEA) has now formally given the green light for feasibility studies in the Baltic Sea is an important milestone for the establishment of the energy island there, according to Hanne Storm Edelfsen, deputy director at Energinet and the person in charge of Energinet’s work with the energy islands.

“This is a huge feasibility study project. Cables and facilities for the energy island will cross a jumble of sailing routes, fishing areas, already planned offshore wind areas and much more. So it will be good to get started”, Hanne Storm Edelfsen said. 

The feasibility studies for Energinet’s onshore facilities for the Bornholm energy island will be carried out later.

Later this year, the Danish Energy Agency will initiate a strategic environmental assessment of the energy island on Bornholm and the proposed offshore wind farms, with a consultation process expected to be launched at the end of 2021 or early next year.

Both energy islands, the one in the North Sea and the one on Bornholm, must be connected to other countries’ grids and be completed by 2030.

At the beginning of this year, German transmission system operator 50Hertz and Energinet signed a Letter of Intent to collaborate on the Bornholm Energy Island project in the Baltic Sea.

The Bornholm Energy Island would connect Germany and Denmark to an offshore hub with around 2,000 MW of wind power capacity that is planned on the island of Bornholm.

The German and Danish grids would be connected by means of an interconnector during the first phase of the development.