The two biggest Danish names in global offshore wind development – Orsted and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) – have joined forces in their home waters to advance more than 5GW of subsidy-free offshore wind in the North Sea and Baltic, in a move they claim can turbocharge Denmark’s energy transition.
The pair will form a 50/50 partnership to develop four projects to start delivering renewable power as soon as 2027/28 “if feasible” and create a “Danish business and export stronghold” for power-to-x in fields such as green hydrogen.
The four developments are Vikinge Banke and Jyske Banke Nord, both 1.1 GW in the North Sea, and Bornholm Bassin Syd and Bornholm Basin Ost of 1.5GW each in the Baltic Sea. Orsted and CIP said the total of 5.2GW represents more than double the total of offshore wind installed off Denmark so far.
The projects will be pushed ahead under the Danish government’s ‘open door’ policy which allows development outside national offshore wind tenders and will be built with no taxpayer subsidies.
The partners aim to advance them “prior to and in parallel with the projects in the government tenders, so that the offshore wind industry can have visibility over new projects and a stable pipeline, which will create sustainable growth in the supply chain, a large part of which is headquartered or has production facilities in Denmark”.
Rasmus Errboe, head of continental Europe at Orsted, said: "Denmark has been a pioneer in offshore wind and is a front-runner in the green transformation. The four major open-door projects can help consolidate Denmark's continued leadership position and create the foundation to kick-start the next phase of a Danish business adventure around the production of renewable hydrogen and green fuels.”
CIP senior partner Torsten Lodberg Smed added: “It’s an obvious and good idea for the most experienced Danish offshore wind developers to join forces to ensure that Denmark's largest build-out of offshore wind takes place as efficiently as possible and with due respect for the environment and biodiversity in Danish waters.”
The partnership is subject to regulatory approval, which the two expect to secure this year.
Denmark is pursuing ambitious policies to turn itself into a European “green powerhouse” with a tendering programme to help push the nation to 12.9GW of offshore wind by 2030, and has laid plans for some of the world’s first ‘energy islands’ linking wind at sea with hydrogen and other green fuels.
