Lithuania seeks investor for second offshore wind farm
Lithuania is looking for an investor to develop a second 700 MW offshore wind farm in order to reduce its dependence on electricity imports and to achieve full self-sufficiency in domestic renewable electricity by 2030, a tender announced today. The two wind farms, with a combined capacity of 1.4 GW, could generate around 6 TWh of green electricity and provide around half of Lithuania's current electricity demand.
The winner of the tender is expected to be announced in June next year, after verification of its compliance with national security interests.
Dainius Kreivys, Minister of Energy, stresses that offshore wind will not only solve one of the most important energy and national security challenges - the shortage of local generation: "With two planned offshore wind farms with a capacity equivalent to the unbuilt Visaginas nuclear power plant, offshore wind will plug the last hole in the generation gap, allow for a huge growth of local green energy, and will be a key factor for Lithuania's transformation from an electricity importer to an exporter of electricity". He said that this is an important commitment to Lithuania's energy independence and security, which will also benefit the economy and consumers: it marks the beginning of a new phase in Lithuania's energy history, with the development of a new type of offshore wind energy in Lithuania's energy sector.
Under the terms of the tender, the developer will be able to offer to develop the park with or without state support, and to compete for the amount of support requested - for all or part of the electricity generated. The successful bidder will also have to contribute at least €5 million to environmental protection in Lithuania's maritime territory and make an annual production contribution to the communities of the municipalities adjacent to the maritime territory (€1 per 1 MWh of electricity produced). Preliminary estimates suggest that this amount could amount to around €3 million per year.
The area of the Baltic Sea designated for the park is approximately 136 km2. It will be about 30 kilometres from the coast.
In preparation for the tender, the Ministry of Energy has approved the concept of the development plan for offshore and onshore engineering infrastructure, work is continuing on the development of specific solutions for the development plan, the environmental impact assessment report for the offshore wind farm has been approved, and geophysical and geotechnical surveys have been carried out on the seabed in the area of the park, wind speeds have been measured, and other hydrometeorological parameters have been measured.
Under the terms of the tender, the developer will be able to offer to develop the park with or without state support, and to compete for the amount of support requested - for all or part of the electricity generated. The successful bidder will also have to contribute at least €5 million to environmental protection in Lithuania's maritime territory and make an annual production contribution to the communities of the municipalities adjacent to the maritime territory (€1 per 1 MWh of electricity produced). Preliminary estimates suggest that this amount could amount to around €3 million per year.
The area of the Baltic Sea designated for the park is approximately 136 km2. It will be about 30 kilometres from the coast.
In preparation for the tender, the Ministry of Energy has approved the concept of the development plan for offshore and onshore engineering infrastructure, work is continuing on the development of specific solutions for the development plan, the environmental impact assessment report for the offshore wind farm has been approved, and geophysical and geotechnical surveys have been carried out on the seabed in the area of the park, wind speeds have been measured, and other hydrometeorological parameters have been measured.
In order to reduce Lithuania's dependence on electricity imports and to be fully self-sufficient in domestic electricity from renewable sources by 2030, the Ministry of Energy is planning two offshore wind farms with a combined capacity of 1.4 GW in the Lithuanian Baltic Sea. These parks could generate around 6 TWh of green electricity per year - around half of Lithuania's current electricity demand.
Lithuania is rapidly expanding its local electricity generation capacity. Over the past few years, electricity production has increased from 30% to nearly 70%, driven entirely by the growth of renewable energy.