KARLSRUHE (dpa-AFX) - The Karlsruhe-based energy company EnBW is having the largest wind farm ever built on the high seas in the North Sea, which will supply electricity for 1.1 million households from the end of 2025. The first foundations will be laid on Saturday, announced Peter Heydecker, Board Member for Sustainable Generation Infrastructure, on Thursday.

64 wind turbines will be connected to the grid around 85 kilometers northwest of the island of Borkum and around 110 kilometers west of Helgoland. The installed capacity is estimated at 960 megawatts. EnBW is thus almost doubling its offshore portfolio.

Offshore wind farms important for the Energiewende

CEO Georg Stamatelopoulos made it clear with regard to the German government's expansion target of generating at least 30 gigawatts of electricity from offshore wind farms by 2030 that this would require a wind farm of this size to be built every three months. The target is not out of the question, said Stamatelopoulos. In order to achieve it, however, a great deal of acceleration and support is needed. With a capacity utilization of around 4,000 hours per year, offshore wind farms could become the pillars of the energy transition.

The planned wind farm "He Dreiht" (Low German for "He turns") with an investment sum of around 2.4 billion euros is currently one of the largest projects of the Energiewende in Europe and is one of the first offshore wind farms without a state requirement. EnBW has already concluded long-term purchase agreements with companies such as Bosch, Deutsche Bahn, Fraport and Evonik before the start of construction, which cover a large part of the electricity volume. A consortium consisting of Allianz Capital Partners, AIP and Norges Bank Investment Management owns 49.9 percent of the shares in "He Dreiht".

Project of superlatives

EnBW does not anticipate any supply bottlenecks during construction, although Stamatelopoulos said in general with regard to Energiewende projects: "We are thin on the ground in Europe." Capital and personnel are also hurdles that need to be overcome for such projects.

The latest generation of wind turbines from the manufacturer Vestas will be used for "He Dreiht". "At a hub height of 142 meters, the rotor with a diameter of 236 meters sweeps through an area of 43,742 square meters in one rotation - that's the equivalent of six soccer pitches," EnBW explains the dimensions.

According to the information provided, one rotation of a 15 megawatt turbine is enough to supply four households with electricity for a day. 120 kilometers of cable under water and 110 kilometers on land ensure a connection to the power grid. More than 500 employees are expected to work on the construction site at peak times. Over 60 ships are involved in the construction work./kre/DP/jha