North Sea offshore wind tendering procedure: The Danish Energy Agency has not received any bids

The deadline for bidding on the first 3 GW of Denmark’s 6 GW offshore wind tendering procedure expired on Thursday. The Danish Energy Agency has not received bids for any of the three offshore wind farms in the North Sea put out to tender. The Minister for Climate, Energy, and Utilities has asked The Danish Energy Agency to engage in dialogue with the market to identify why no bids have been submitted.

Thursday, 5 December was the deadline for bidding on the three offshore wind farms in the North Sea I sub-area in Denmark’s 6 GW offshore wind tendering procedure. The Danish Energy Agency can announce that no bids have been submitted for any of the three wind farms put out to tender.

Denmark’s Minister for Climate, Energy and Utilities, Lars Aagaard, has asked The Danish Energy Agency to engage in dialogue with the market to identify reasons for the lack of bids, given the interest in the tendering procedure expressed by a number of companies during the initial market dialogue.

Besides the three offshore wind farms in the North Sea, the tendering procedure includes three offshore wind farms in Danish coastal waters: Hesselø, Kattegat and Kriegers Flak II. The deadline for bids on these three farms is 1 April 2025.

FACTS

Tendering procedure for 6 GW offshore wind power

A total of 6 GW has been put out to tender, with the possibility of overplanting. This means that successful bidders are free to establish more than the minimum capacity of 6 GW: potentially as much as 10 GW offshore wind or even more. Danish offshore wind farms currently have a total capacity of 2.7 GW.

The 6 GW is divided into six farms, of which the three put out to tender in the first round, with a deadline of 5 December, are located in the North Sea (North Sea I A1, A2 and A3). The three farms in the second round are located in Danish coastal waters (Hesselø, Kattegat and Kriegers Flak II). The deadline for submitting bids for these three farms is 1 April 2025.

The 6 GW offshore wind is offered without subsidies and with an annual concession payment. Bidders participate by tendering a fixed concession payment to the state over 30 years for the right to use the marine area.

The concession payment is combined with 20% state co-ownership, making the Danish state a minority owner in each project.

A number of requirements have been introduced to ensure sustainability and social responsibility in the projects.