The governments of Germany and Denmark are preparing a solution that would see Europe take a step back in gas supplies from Russia.
At stake is the construction of an offshore wind farm on the island of Bornholm Energy – in the Baltic Sea, which will connect several wind farms and distribute the energy produced by these two countries. The project will have a generation capacity of 3 gigawatts (GW), capable of powering 4.1 million homes, but only from 2030 onwards.
Investments in infrastructure will amount to 3 billion euros, including 6 billion euros for offshore wind farms, according to the Danish government. The costs will be shared between the two parties and will be borne by 50 Hz on the German side and Energinet on the Danish side. Once operational, other Baltic states and Poland could join the scheme, subject to the approval of both members.
Dan Jorgensen, the Danish energy minister, reveals that it is a “profitable deal for taxpayers” and that it “takes a lot of confidence and willingness from both countries to support a project of this scale”. His German counterpart, Robert Habeck, explains in statements to Bloomberg that “this is the first time in Europe that two countries have collaborated on such a project.”
The project also aims to contribute to the targets set by the European Commission, which aims to achieve 300 GW of wind energy production capacity by 2050. Currently, only 12 GW is generated.
