Offshore wind: Germany's Reiche wants to allow return of unrealistic awards
The economy minister acknowledged "significant flaws" in the auctions. Unprofitable projects are to be re-tendered, but companies would remain liable.
Symbolic image · Photo: U.S. Department of Energy from United States / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain (cropped and resized)
German Economy Minister Katherina Reiche (CDU) wants to allow, in exceptional cases, an orderly return and re-award of sites for offshore wind farms. She was responding to a letter from eight German states warning of a break in offshore wind expansion and of job losses. Companies would remain financially liable, Reiche said. Germany's offshore wind auction system had "significant flaws," the minister said. Known risks had been ignored, creating a gap between bids and actual construction. "Closing this gap is now our task."
Sites totaling about 16 gigawatts were awarded in 2023 and 2024 – more than one and a half times the capacity currently installed in German waters. Investment costs have risen by about 50% in three years, Handelsblatt reported, citing ministry sources, and grid connections via large converter platforms have been delayed by years in some cases. TotalEnergies cited grid connection delays in June when it explained plans to return concessions.
The letter was signed by the heads of government of Lower Saxony, Bavaria, Hamburg, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bremen, Saarland and Schleswig-Holstein. Industry associations BWO and BDEW are also calling for a return option. The federal government's draft law does not so far provide for a unilateral return of awards; whether the federal government and the states will agree in parliament remains open.