Borkum Riffgrund 3 Offshore Wind Farm is one of Germany’s largest and most advanced offshore renewable energy projects, located in the North Sea approximately 110 kilometers off the coast of Lower Saxony. Developed by Ørsted in partnership with Glennmont Partners from Nuveen Infrastructure, the 913 MW project marks a major step in Europe’s transition toward large-scale, subsidy-free offshore wind power. It also builds on the success of Ørsted’s earlier German projects – Borkum Riffgrund 1 and 2 – and benefits from shared grid infrastructure with the neighboring Gode Wind 3 development. Once fully operational, it will generate enough clean electricity to power more than 900,000 German homes, strengthening the country’s renewable energy base and advancing its 2030 climate goals.
Borkum Riffgrund 3 Factsheet
Developer: Ørsted
Partner: Glennmont Partners from Nuveen Infrastructure
Capacity: 913 MW
Turbines: Siemens Gamesa SG 11.0-200 DD (approx. 83 units)
Technology: Direct-drive offshore wind turbines
Grid Connection: DolWin5 HVDC link system operated by TenneT
Offshore Substation: DolWin epsilon
Location: German North Sea, 110 km northwest of the island of Borkum
Power Export Distance: 100 km to Hilgenriedersiel (Lower Saxony)
Power Equivalent: 900,000 households supplied
Ownership: Ørsted (50%), Glennmont Partners (50%)
Construction Type: Subsidy-free commercial offshore project
Timeline
2019: Ørsted awarded development rights for Borkum Riffgrund 3.
2021: Final investment decision (FID) reached. Siemens Gamesa also selected as turbine supplier.
2022: Offshore cable and platform fabrication begin under TenneT’s DolWin5 contract.
2023: Major turbine components and foundations enter production.
2024: Offshore construction and turbine installation commence.
October 2025: DolWin5 grid connection system fully energized by TenneT.
2026: Project commissioning and start of full commercial operations expected.
Ørsted Completes Sale of 50% Stake in 900 MW Borkum Riffgrund 3 Offshore Wind Farm
Reported February 13, 2022 – Ørsted has finalized the 50 percent divestment of Germany’s 900 MW Borkum Riffgrund 3 offshore wind farm. This is also the first farm-down to an institutional investor signed by the developer prior to taking a final investment plan that was achieved in December 2021.
According to the data released in October last year, the total transaction price is around 1.21 billion euros. This includes the value for the possession of a 50 percent ownership share. It also features dedication to finance 50 percent of the payments under an EPC tender for the whole wind farm.
Being part of the consensus, Ørsted will also build the wind farm under a full-scope EPC tender. It will execute maintenance and operations services for 20 years. Orsted will also market for the power and green certificates produced by Borkum Riffgrund 3.
Project Overview
The Borkum Riffgrund 3 offshore wind farm is an approximately 900MW wind power project that is being developed by Ørsted A/S. Orsted is a Danish multinational power company and the largest energy company in Denmark. The wind farm is in the region of 30m-deep waters in the North Sea, off the coast of Lower Saxony, Germany, Europe.
The project is made up of three sub-projects which are the Borkum Riffgrund 1, Borkum Riffgrund 2, and the OWP West wind power farms. They have 420, 240, and 240 Megawatts power capacity respectively.
The Borkum Riffgrund 3 offshore wind farm will also be equipped with a total of about 80 SG 11.0-200 DD wind turbines from Siemens Gamesa. Siemens is a global technology leader in the renewable energy industry. They specialize in the development, manufacturing, installation, and maintenance of wind turbines.
With a 200m-diametre rotor and 97m-long blades, each of the turbines will have a swept area of 31,400m2. With rated output of 11 MW, it also offers up to 9% more annual energy production (AEP) compared to its predecessor SG 10.0-193 DD turbines.
The Borkum Riffgrund 3 Offshore Wind Farm is expected to become operational in 2025.
Borkum Riffgrund 3 Offshore Wind Farm Power Evacuation
The power generated from the Borkum Riffgrund 3 Offshore Wind Farm will be gathered and transmitted through a 66kV high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission system. This is in form of a three-phase alternating current (AC) to DolWin epsilon offshore converter. DolWin will convert AC into a direct current (DC).
Also Read: The Akita Noshiro offshore wind farm project timeline and all you need to know
As DC, the power will be transported over a distance of 100km through a submarine cable. Destination is to the landing point in Hamswehrum. This is a village in the municipality of Krummhörn in western East Frisia.
A 30km-long land cable will provide a connection between Hamswehrum and the converter station in Emden. Emden is the main city of the region of East Frisia. Here, the electricity will be converted back into three-phase AC before being fed into the extra-high-voltage grid.
Construction of the Borkum Riffgrund 3 Offshore Wind Farms power evacuation system, whose commissioning is expected in 2024, will be carried out by TenneT. TenneT is a leading European electricity transmission system operator (TSO).
This system will also be the first offshore grid connection system that connects wind turbines directly to offshore platforms. This eliminates the need for substations.
Borkum Riffgrund Through the Years
Ørsted secured the right to build the Borkum Riffgrund 1 and 2, and the OWP West wind power farms in German offshore wind auctions held between 2017 and 2018.
May 2019
TenneT selected Aibel and Keppel FELS consortium for the offshore grid connection. Keppel FELS would also manufacture the DolWin epsilon offshore platform steel structure at its shipyard in Singapore. Aibel installs the DolWin epsilon with the converter and transformers at Haugesund, Norway.
ABB‘s Power Grids business secured an order from Aibel/Keppel FELS consortium for the offshore wind connection project DolWin5.
September 2019
Ørsted clubbed the three offshore wind projects into one and renamed the project Borkum Riffgrund 3.
December 2019
A ten-year corporate power purchase agreement (CPPA) was signed between Ørsted and Covestro. The latter is a high-performance polymer materials supplier based in Germany. Off-take is for a 100 MW from the Borkum Riffgrund 3 wind farm.
March 2020
Siemens Gamesa was selected as the preferred turbine supplier for the project. The company also signed a five years’ service and maintenance agreement.
December 2020
Ørsted signed another CPPA with Amazon to supply 250MW from the Borkum Riffgrund 3 wind farm for a period of ten years. It was also the biggest ever of its kind for offshore wind in Europe.
June 2021
AqualisBraemar LOC secured a contract to provide marine warranty services for the export cable installation of the DolWin5 offshore grid connection project.
July 2021
Safety science and service provider for the renewables industry UL was awarded a contract to certify turbines and foundations for the Borkum Riffgrund 3 wind farm project.
September 2021
Ørsted signed contracts with Bladt Industries and Steelwind Nordenham for the of supply monopile foundations. REWE Group also signed a ten-year agreement to purchase 100MW of power from the offshore wind farm.
October 2021
Ørsted signed an agreement to divest 50% of its ownership in Borkum Riffgrund 3 to Glennmont Partners for approximately US$ 1.41bn. The offshore wind project was also approved by the German Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH).
Jan De Nul Group was contracted to transport and install monopile foundations and an offshore substation topside. Seaway 7 was also announced as the preferred contractor for the transport and installation of wind turbine generators.
November 2021
Ørsted also signed a 12-year CPPA with Google. The off-take is for 50 MW of Borkum Riffgrund 3 Offshore Wind Farm.
December 2021
Aibel and Keppel FELS held a strike steel ceremony at Keppel FELS’ shipyard in Singapore. This marked the start of construction of the DolWin5 high voltage direct current (HVDC) offshore converter platform. Ørsted’s Board of Directors also took the final investment decision (FID) for the project.
