COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – Denmark will halt all ongoing offshore wind tenders as the existing framework where no subsidies are offered does not work under current market conditions, its energy minister said on Friday.
The global offshore wind industry has been hit by surging costs, rising interest rates and supply chain bottlenecks. Denmark said in December that its latest tender for wind at sea had failed to attract any bids.
The government will now start preparations to launch a new offshore wind tender this year with a capacity of two to three gigawatts (GW), where state subsidies might be offered, energy minister Lars Aagaard told a press conference.
“Our assessment right now is that we might be required to support offshore wind. It’s not because we’re happy about it, but it’s necessary,” Aagaard said.
Denmark has been a pioneer in both onshore and offshore wind, and is home to turbine maker Vestas and the world’s largest offshore wind developer Orsted. Orsted said on Friday it would replace its CEO as it seeks to arrest an 83% slump in its share price since its 2021 peak.
The government also said it planned to help finance a hydrogen pipeline running from Denmark to the German border.
Using excess power generated by wind at times when it is not needed by users to produce so-called green hydrogen is seen as critical to Europe’s green transition, but development has stalled.
“At this stage, time is of the essence, and therefore the government is committed to making export to Germany possible from 2030,” the energy ministry said in a statement.
(Reporting by Stine Jacobsen and Isabelle Yr Carlsson; Editing by Jason Neely and Frances Kerry)
