Denmark puts open-door route for offshore wind on hold

The Danish energy agency on Monday said it is suspending the processing of offshore wind project applications under the country’s open-door scheme until further clarification of EU legal issues.

The decision follows an assessment by the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Utilities that awarding of permits under the open-door procedure may be in breach of EU law.

Processing of all pending projects under this scheme as well as any new applications has been paused until a more thorough investigation of the scheme’s relation to EU law.

The Danish Energy Agency said it will seek to clarify the issues as soon as possible with support from relevant ministries. The parties involved have been informed and will be kept updated on the process, according to the announcement.

The open-door procedure allows developers to submit unsolicited applications for the development of an offshore wind farm in an area of their selection. They start with seeking permission for a license to perform preliminary investigations.

In October 2022, two Danish heavyweight developers, Ørsted (CPH:ORSTED) and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) unveiled a partnership to develop 5.2 GW of offshore wind in Denmark's open-door scheme without taxpayer support.

Green Power Denmark, an industry group formed last year as a result of a merger between Dansk Energi, Wind Denmark and Solar Power Denmark, vehemently criticised Monday’s announcement and said it threatens the country’s climate goals.

According to the organisation, over 15 GW of power capacity was ready to be installed under the open-door scheme. Green Power Denmark chief executive Kristian Jensen said that the country is now only left with the planned 9 GW of offshore wind, for which tenders have not started. Given that onshore wind and solar are expanding at a slow rate, Denmark urgently needs green power for its 2030 climate goals, Power-to-X ambitions and the objective to become a net exporter of green power, added Jensen.

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