The European Commission has given its consent for Denmark to support the 600MW Kriegers Flak offshore wind farm as it complies with EU state aid rules.
The offshore wind farm, which will be located in Danish waters of Baltic Sea can help reduce CO2 emissions of the country. EU noted that state aid to this wind farm will not unduly affect competition in the region.
Denmark informed about state support to the project to the European Commission this February. The state support measure includes a competitive bidding process for the design, construction, operation and decommissioning of an offshore wind farm in Kriegers Flak in the Baltic Sea.
Denmark plans to support wind farm development through premium on top of the electricity price in the Nord-Pool market.
The tender was opened in 2016 and the winning bid was DKK0.372/kWh (€50/MWh) to be paid for a total of 30TWh of production, which is an estimated production at Kriegers Flak for about 12 years of operation. Vattenfall has won the tender for the construction of the wind farm.
When prices are negative, tthe Kriegers Flak offshore wind farm is not entitled to receive any grant.
Besides, a new interconnector is planned to be established. This will link the Danish Island of Zealand to Germany through the Kriegers Flak offshore wind farm and two German offshore wind farms, Baltic 1 and Baltic 2.
The interconnector is expected to enable an increased exchange of electricity between Denmark and Germany.
The European Commission finally concluded that the project contributes significantly in increasing Denmark’s share of renewable energy and outweighs any potential distortions of competition.
European Commissioner for competition Margrethe Vestager said: "The Kriegers Flak offshore wind farm will help to cut carbon dioxide emissions while the support is carefully designed to avoid distorting competition in electricity markets. I'm glad to be able to approve state support for this project."
Image: European Commission approves Danish support for Kriegers Flak offshore wind farm. Photo: Courtesy of xedos4/FreeDigitalPhotos.net.