Vattenfall picks Siemens Gamesa for 955MW off Denmark
Siemens Gamesa will supply up to 955MW of its 8MW turbines to three Danish offshore wind farms after developer Vattenfall placed the largest order in the sector this year.
The manufacturer will equip the Swedish energy group’s Kriegers Flak wind farm in the Baltic Sea, and the Vesterhav Syd and Nord North Sea projects.
Vattenfall will spend almost €1.7bn ($2bn) building the projects, among the largest investments it has made in renewable energy to date.
The Swedish group in 2016 won the 605MW Kriegers Flak with a record-low €49.90/MWh bid, with Vesterhav Syd and Nord – with up to 350MW between them – coming in at €61/MWh.
Vattenfall said the combined turbine supply deal – which also covers installation and servicing – is a key element of the cost equation.
“A combined purchase gives us a lower price, which means that construction costs for offshore wind power can be further reduced. Vattenfall will naturally take these cost-levels into other markets,” said Gunnar Groebler, the company’s head of wind power.
Kriegers Flak – due in full operation in 2021 – will use 72 turbines, with 41 earmarked for the twin North Sea projects which will enter service a year earlier. Between them they will power one million Danish homes.
The deal is a welcome boost for Spain-based Siemens Gamesa, which has been under commercial pressure since the merger of the former Siemens Wind business – the offshore sector’s frontrunner – and Gamesa.