Trianel Windpark Borkum Generates 452.33GWh in 6 Months

First purely municipal offshore wind farm installed off German coast, Trianel Windpark Borkum, has been in operation for half a year now, and has generated 452.33GWh of electricity, with January 2016 as the month with the highest yield so far – 95.12GWh.

Construction on the wind farm began in September 2011. From July 2013, all 40 AREVA Wind M5000-116 wind turbines were erected, generating a total power output of 200MW, in just under eleven months. However, construction plans were delayed after the grid connection was moved several times by the transmission system operator, which also delayed the commissioning of the wind farm. Trianel Windpark Borkum was fully commissioned on 1 September 2015.

The company further reported that the technical availability of the 40 wind turbines during the first phase was more than 90 percent. The forecasts for the current business year anticipate that the wind farm will exceed 4,000 full-capacity hours.

The second expansion phase of the Trianel Windpark Borkum (TWB II) is being developed with an additional output of 200MW in a joint venture between EWE AG and Trianel. Based on current plans, the final construction decision will be taken in the first half of 2017. EWE currently holds a 40 percent share in the project development.

A participation structure for the construction of the second expansion phase has not yet been decided on. The distribution of ownership will be decided in 2016, Trianel said.

“There is great interest among the municipal utilities in further offshore exploration,” Horstick emphasised. “The existing infrastructure such as the transformer platform and the connection to the grid as well as the expected yield data make TWB II very economically attractive.”

The EU-wide tender processes are currently underway for individual subsections such as the wind turbines, foundation structures and inner park cabling, which also serve to make the final cost estimate for the second expansion phase.