The Danish Energy Agency (DEA) has issued permits to the Danish transmission system operator (TSO), Energinet, regarding the initiation of preliminary site investigations in the Kattegat II and Kriegers Flak II areas as well as the new location chosen for the Hesselø offshore wind farm.
The site investigations will be initiated by Energinet in the early first quarter of 2023 and will cover geophysical and geotechnical studies of the areas potentially designated for offshore wind farms and their possible cable routes, as well as marine biological studies to be carried out in the surrounding areas.
The issued permits do not grant rights to develop the areas in scope but instead give Energinet the right to gather relevant data concerning the identified sites.
This data will, among other things, contribute to mitigating risks for potential developers as well as provide needed data for the project’s later strategic environmental assessment (SEA), according to DEA.
A potential developer will also be able to use the results of the preliminary site investigations for the environmental impact assessment (EIA).
EIA for the Hesselø offshore wind farm will be carried out in 2025-2026 when the winner of the tender for the project has been appointed.
The offshore wind farm will have an installed capacity of between 800 MW and 1,200 MW and is expected to be fully operational by 2029, at the latest.
The offshore project site is located in Hesselø Bay, some 30 kilometres from the coast of North Zealand, 30 kilometres from Anholt, and around 35 kilometres offshore Djursland.
In September, Energinet gave the green light to carry out feasibility studies for four new offshore wind farms, including Kattegat II, Kriegers Flak II, and Hesselø offshore wind farm.
Kattegat II and Kriegers Flak II will both have an installed capacity of up to 2 GW and are planned to be built by 2030.