Germany and Denmark plan to cooperate more closely in offshore wind and the development of energy islands or hubs, both to increase the supply of renewable power and green hydrogen, the energy ministries of the two countries said in a joint statement.
“Last week, Denmark took the decision to exit oil and gas extraction by 2050. Today, Denmark and Germany take another step forward by strengthening their cooperation in order to jointly develop and link offshore wind energy hubs,” Danish climate and energy minister Dan Jørgensen said.
“That will not only significantly increase renewable power production in both countries. It is also a prerequisite for power-to-x technologies in order to produce sustainable fuels for shipping and aviation.
“For this purpose, Denmark is working on erecting two offshore hubs with a capacity of 5GW each.”
Danish energy hub plans
Denmark has been more concrete with its idea for energy islands so far than Germany, and the statement now said that Danish energy islands in the North and Baltic Seas in the long run should reach a capacity of 12GW.
The bi-lateral agreement is meant as a start for further cooperation, in which joint projects and their possible design are slated to be examined.
“Joint offshore wind projects will play an important role on the path to a climate neutral Europe and therefore are a main emphasis of the German EU presidency,” German economics and energy minister Peter Altmaier said.
“Now we need to identify joint projects with our neighbours that ensure that both countries will profit. Such projects in particular can enable synergies for the development of green hydrogen.”
Kriegers Flak interconnector
Germany and Denmark already cooperate in the format of both the North and Baltic Sea Offshore Wind Declaration.
And both have built an interconnector at the point where their sea border meets with that of Sweden to link Germany’s 288MW Baltic 2 offshore wind farm, its 48MW Baltic 1 wind farm and the under construction 600MW Kriegers Flak project in Denmark to both countries.
The interconnector, which is in final phases of commissioning, also allow for a cross-border power trade of up to 400MW. A possible future wind farm in Swedish waters would turn Kriegers Flak into a three-way grid connection.
Altmaier and Jørgensen met online today in the wake of an EU energy minister meeting and a meeting of North Sea energy cooperation countries.
