Germany – Northland Power and RWE Renewables GmbH have agreed to collaborate on a cluster of offshore wind projects with a total gross capacity of 1.3 gigawatts in the German North Sea (GW).
The partners signed a memorandum of understanding to form a joint venture company to jointly develop, build, and operate the cluster of three offshore wind projects. The 433 MW N-3.8 (Nordsee 2), 420 MW N-3.5 (Nordsee 3) and 480 MW N-3.6 (Delta Nordsee) sites will make up the cluster.
Northland will gain access to the N-3.6 (Delta Nordsee) site, which RWE has step-in rights for 100% of the lease, in addition to its positions in the N-3.8 (Nordsee 2) and N-3.5 (Nordsee 3) sites. At the same time, RWE will increase its position in the N-3.8 (Nordsee 2) and N-3.5 (Nordsee 3) sites. Northland will also benefit from increased offtake opportunities as a result of the partnership and cluster’s formation, which will secure offtake agreements for the projects once they are completed. The cluster will be located near the existing 332 MW Nordsee One wind farm, where Northland and RWE are already partners.
For the N-3.8 (Nordsee 2) and N-3.5 (Nordsee 3) leases, Northland and RWE have step-in rights, while RWE has step-in rights for the N-3.6 (Delta Nordsee) lease. The partners used their step-in rights for N-3.8 (Nordsee 2) in early November, allowing them to match the winning bid in the auction and keep the lease. The remaining leases will be auctioned off in 2023. Step-in rights are held by the joint venture for both sites.
RWE will own 51 percent of the new joint venture, with Northland owning 49 percent.
