The German Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie, BSH) has approved the construction of the NC 3 and NC 4 offshore wind farms. A total of 60 new turbines are to be built north of the East Frisian Islands.
The planning approvals for the new wind farms have been handed over to Nordseecluster B by the BSH. The company, which belongs to the RWE Group, will construct and operate the two offshore wind farms. “The BSH is thus ensuring planning security for investments by industry,” said BSH President Helge Heegewaldt on the occasion of the handover.
A total of 60 wind turbines will be built on an area of 62 km2 north of the East Frisian Islands. NC 3 will be home to 28 turbines, the remaining 32 to NC 4. The sites in the German Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) are around 46 km from the island of Borkum and 34 km from the island of Norderney.
The wind farms are a joint offshore wind project of RWE and Norges Bank Investment Management. RWE, which holds the majority of the shares (51%), is responsible for the construction and operation of the offshore wind farms over their entire life cycle.
“In view of massively rising prices for energy imports and geopolitical tensions, the energy transition is more urgent than ever,” says Heegewaldt. “Offshore wind energy strengthens Germany’s independence from fossil fuels and makes a significant contribution to climate protection.” The BSH approved the two new wind farms on the basis of the acceleration legislation. “The law will help to secure Germany’s supply of clean energy more quickly and strengthen its independence.”
Each of the offshore wind turbines has an output of 15 MW. With a capacity of 420 MW for NC 3 and 480 MW for NC 4, this results in a total capacity of 900 MW. The turbines will be erected on monopile foundations at a water depth of 27 to 33 meters. The planned turbines have a rotor diameter of 236 m and a total height of 263 m up to the tip of the rotor blade. The electricity generated by both wind farms is to be fed from the “DolWin Delta” converter platform via the NOR-3-2 grid connection system.
Construction of the two wind farms is scheduled to start in spring 2027 and the first turbines are expected to be commissioned from the third quarter of 2028.
