RWE Renewables Offshore HoldCo Four GmbH, a unit of energy major RWE AG (ETR:RWE), is the winning contender in the competitive auction to develop a 980-MW offshore wind farm in the N-7.2 zone in the German North Sea.
The tender, with a September 1 deadline and a cap of EUR 0.064 (USD 0.060) per kWh, was won with a zero-subsidy bid, the Federal Network Agency Bundesnetzagentur announced on Wednesday.
Swedish utility Vattenfall, meanwhile, has the step-in rights for the N-7.2 zone through Vattenfall Atlantis 1 and Global Tech 2 Offshore Wind GmbH. They can be exercised by the end of October by matching RWE’s offer.
The turbine capacity has to go online by 2027.
”The zero-cent bid further confirms the attractiveness of investments in offshore wind energy in Germany. It shows that companies assume they can market wind power profitably,” said Bundesnetzagentur’s president Klaus Muller.
The latest auction is based on the so-called "central model" which was introduced last year. Under this model, the tender includes not only the funding and the grid connection of the wind turbines and their operations for 25 years but gives the winner the right to apply with the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) for planning approval for the development of the site.
(EUR 1.0 = USD 1.001)
Choose your newsletter by Renewables Now. Join for free!