European grid operator TenneT on Thursday officially signed a EUR-30-billion (USD 32.9bn) package of contracts related to the establishment of 14 offshore grid connection systems of 2 GW each in the Dutch and German portions of the North Sea.
The transmission system operator (TSO) said in a statement that this event marks the completion of the process of awarding contracts, launched last August, for the sea- and land-based converter stations for these systems. At the ceremony, TenneT not only formalised the 11 awards unveiled at the end of March, but also made the remaining three orders. The winner of the additional jobs is a consortium of Siemens Energy AG (ETR:ENR) and Dragados Offshore.
The table below gives details about the awardees and the projects they are tasked with.
| Cooperation partnership | Names of awarded projects |
| Siemens Energy/Dragados consortium | BalWin3, LanWin4 and LanWin2 (Germany) |
| GE/McDermott | BalWin4 and LanWin1 (Germany) |
| Hitachi Energy/Petrofac | IJmuiden Ver Alpha, Nederwiek 1, Doordewind 1, Doordewind 2, Nederwiek 3 (Netherlands) and LanWin5 (Germany) |
| GE/Sembcorp (SMOP) | IJmuiden Ver Beta, IJmuiden Ver Gamma and Nederwiek 2 (Netherlands) |
TenneT said that all 14 systems should be realised by 2031 using core components manufactured in Europe. All deals apply to both the offshore and onshore converter stations, as well as the associated high-voltage direct current (HVDC) technology, the company noted.
“In the global race against climate change, grid expansion must be able to keep pace with the accelerated expansion targets for renewable energies. Shorter contracting processes, large-scale tenders and standardisation of solutions show how grid operators and manufacturers are already pulling together to get green energy to consumers faster,” commented Tim Holt, member of the Siemens Energy Executive Board. “However, in order for the industry to continue ramping up capacity, all available levers must now be pulled at the policy level as well – from raw material and skilled labour strategies to further streamlining permitting processes at all levels,” he added.
With 40 GW of capacity, TenneT will account for nearly two-thirds of the 65 GW offshore wind energy target by 2030 agreed last May by Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Belgium.
(EUR 1.0 = USD 1.097)
