Sian Crampsie
The European Commission has granted Denmark permission to provide state support for the Kriegers Flak offshore wind farm.
Europe’s competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager said that the 600 MW project would help Denmark to reduce greenhouse gas emissions without unduly distorting competition. “I’m glad to be able to approve state support for this project,” Vestager said.
Kriegers Flak will be Denmark’s largest offshore wind farm and will be constructed by Vattenfall, which won a competitive tender for the project in 2016 with a price of €49.9/MWh.
In February 2017 Denmark notified the European Commission of its intention to provide state support for the project, located in Danish waters of the Baltic Sea. The support will be granted as a premium on top of the electricity price in the Nord-Pool market.
In addition, a new interconnector will be established to link the Danish island of Zealand to Germany via the Kriegers Flak offshore wind farm and two German offshore wind farms, Baltic 1 and Baltic 2. This interconnector will therefore allow for an increased exchange of electricity between Denmark and Germany.
The Commission concluded that the project’s contribution to increasing the share of renewable energy produced in Denmark and reducing carbon dioxide emissions outweighs any potential distortions of competition due to the government support.
