Germany, Denmark ink deal for 3-GW Bornholm energy island

June 2 (Renewables Now) - Germany and Denmark on Thursday sealed a legally binding agreement to cooperate on the Bornholm energy island project that involves the deployment of at least 3 GW of wind in the Danish part of the Baltic Sea with plans to supply clean power to both countries.

The deal was signed by German economy minister Robert Habeck and Danish energy minister Lars Aagaard.

In a statement on Thursday, Germany's Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) said that the legally binding agreement is the cornerstone for the implementation of the Bornholm energy island project which is a milestone for the ambitious offshore wind targets declared by the North Sea countries in Esbjerg in 2022 and Ostend in 2023.

The agreement builds on a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the cornerstones of the project that was signed by the two countries in July 2022.

The offshore wind turbines of the Bornholm energy island should be connected to the Danish grid in the early 2030s. The electricity is then to be transported via new grid connections to Germany with a share of 2 GW and to the Danish mainland with a share of 1.2 GW.

The transmission system operators (TSO) involved in the initiative -- 50Hertz and Energinet, have already agreed that they would each assume half of the infrastructure costs of the project. In return, the two companies will share the congestion revenues from the respective lines to Germany and Denmark and own the interconnector to the mainland in the respective country.