The Netherlands to Award Offshore Wind Innovation Zone Permit in April

The Netherlands will reveal the winner of the permit to build and operate the Borssele V Innovation Site by the end of April.

The Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy issued a tender call for the development of the Borssele V offshore wind site in January 2018.

The bids are now being assessed based on their innovative nature, their contribution to knowledge and experience, and their impact on further reductions in the cost price for offshore wind energy.

Through this tender, the Dutch government has offered a subsidy both for the production of the electricity and for the higher investment costs. As well as the subsidy and the permit for the building and exploitation, a connection to the grid will be guaranteed. The nominal capacity of the Innovation Site will be between 6 and 20MW. This can be delivered by a maximum of two turbines.

The subsidy cap for the operation and investment elements combined amounts to EUR 57 million. A maximum of EUR 42 million will be awarded for the operation costs and a maximum of EUR 15 million for the investment costs.

Under the tender conditions, the offshore wind power generation facility must be put into operation within five years of the date of the decision to grant the subsidy.