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Released December 11, 2012 | SUGAR LAND
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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland) -- Germany's government is hoping to drive through a law before the end of the year that will end crippling delays to the rollout of vital offshore wind projects in the North Sea.
Ongoing wrangles between energy companies and network transmission operators over delays in connecting windfarms to the grid have led to a number of high profile offshore projects being postponed in recent months.
The German government wants to push through a new law that will drastically reduce the damages that transmission companies face for connection delays. It is designed to allow the network operators to get insurance, which they claim they cannot get, due to the massive liability charges they face from energy companies for delays in connecting windfarms to the grid.
Germany's Environment Minister, Peter Altmaier, claimed he is 'optimistic' about getting an agreement on the issue and a law passed through parliament in the coming month, despite strong resistance from opposition parties.
"It's right to pass the law before year-end so that it can enter into force early next year," Altmaier explained. "It's to provide clarity that the expansion of offshore wind energy won't grind to a halt because of these problems. There are a lot of jobs depending on it and I want us to send a signal of optimism."
Germany wants to add 10,000-megawatts (MW) of offshore wind to its electricity mix by 2020 but so far, this year, only 45 MW has been commissioned. Germany needs to get offshore windfarms up and running fast since its decision last year to exit the nuclear power sector within the decade will result in a large energy gap. For additional information, see May 30, 2011, article - Germany Votes to Dump Nuclear Power.
Germany's offshore goals have been hit by a number of large project delays and cancellations. At the end of October, Dong Energy A/S (Fredericia, Denmark) postponed plans to develop the 346 MW Borkum Riffgrund II, blaming German grid operator, TenneT TSO BV (Arnhem, Netherlands) for not being able to connect the windfarm to the grid on time. For additional information, see October 25, 2012, article - Dong Halts German Offshore Windfarm.
TenneT TSO BV is also under fire from German heavyweights E.ON AG (OTC:EONGY) (Dusseldorf, Germany) and RWE AG (OTC:RWEOY) (Essen, Germany) who blame it for offshore project delays.
In August, RWE announced that it was postponing its first German offshore wind project due to connection issues. A decision on the 295 MW Innogy Nordsee 1 windfarm has been pushed back until sometime next year. For additional information see July 31, 2012, article - RWE Delays Nordsee Offshore Project.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
Ongoing wrangles between energy companies and network transmission operators over delays in connecting windfarms to the grid have led to a number of high profile offshore projects being postponed in recent months.
The German government wants to push through a new law that will drastically reduce the damages that transmission companies face for connection delays. It is designed to allow the network operators to get insurance, which they claim they cannot get, due to the massive liability charges they face from energy companies for delays in connecting windfarms to the grid.
Germany's Environment Minister, Peter Altmaier, claimed he is 'optimistic' about getting an agreement on the issue and a law passed through parliament in the coming month, despite strong resistance from opposition parties.
"It's right to pass the law before year-end so that it can enter into force early next year," Altmaier explained. "It's to provide clarity that the expansion of offshore wind energy won't grind to a halt because of these problems. There are a lot of jobs depending on it and I want us to send a signal of optimism."
Germany wants to add 10,000-megawatts (MW) of offshore wind to its electricity mix by 2020 but so far, this year, only 45 MW has been commissioned. Germany needs to get offshore windfarms up and running fast since its decision last year to exit the nuclear power sector within the decade will result in a large energy gap. For additional information, see May 30, 2011, article - Germany Votes to Dump Nuclear Power.
Germany's offshore goals have been hit by a number of large project delays and cancellations. At the end of October, Dong Energy A/S (Fredericia, Denmark) postponed plans to develop the 346 MW Borkum Riffgrund II, blaming German grid operator, TenneT TSO BV (Arnhem, Netherlands) for not being able to connect the windfarm to the grid on time. For additional information, see October 25, 2012, article - Dong Halts German Offshore Windfarm.
TenneT TSO BV is also under fire from German heavyweights E.ON AG (OTC:EONGY) (Dusseldorf, Germany) and RWE AG (OTC:RWEOY) (Essen, Germany) who blame it for offshore project delays.
In August, RWE announced that it was postponing its first German offshore wind project due to connection issues. A decision on the 295 MW Innogy Nordsee 1 windfarm has been pushed back until sometime next year. For additional information see July 31, 2012, article - RWE Delays Nordsee Offshore Project.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
