Vattenfall Cleared to Build Contentious Near Shore Windfarms in Denmark

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Sweden's state-owned energy company Vattenfall (Stockholm) has been cleared to build a couple of controversial near-shore offshore windfarms in Denmark.

A majority of the Danish parliament has voted in favour of the Danish Near Shore (DNS) windfarms, which will have a final combined generating capacity of approximately 350 megawatts (MW). Industrial Info reported that Vattenfall had won the contract for the Vesterhav Syd and Vesterhav Nord projects on the west coast of Jutland in September, undercutting rivals with a bid of 0.475 kroner ($0.07) per kilowatt-hour (kWh), far below the government's guideline price of 0.70 kroner ($0.10) per kWh. For additional information, see September 14, 2016, article--Denmark Awards 350-Megawatt Wind Contract to Vattenfall.

The windfarms have been the subject of intense political debate this year with opponents calling for them to be blocked on the grounds of being too close to shore and a visual blot on the horizon. Work is now expected to kick-off in 2019 with commissioning expected by the end of 2020.

"We are really pleased that the Folketing [Danish parliament] has now confirmed that we can start building these near shore wind farms," said Magnus Hall, Chief Executive Officer and President of Vattenfall. "This means that Vattenfall will further strengthen its position as a leading wind power producer in Denmark. At the same time it means more affordable renewable electricity for the Danish population and a quicker route to making Denmark independent of fossil fuels."

Denmark leads Europe in wind power generation, getting more than 40% of its electricity from wind. Earlier this month, Vattenfall saw off its rivals again by submitting the lowest bid to secure the 600-megawatt (MW) Kriegers Flak offshore windfarm contract from Denmark's government. For additional information, see November 14, 2016, article--Vattenfall Blows Rivals Away for Largest Nordic Windfarm.

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