'Three quarters of power from wind' | Dutch aim for new heights with tender for latest giant offshore zone
The Netherlands has turned offshore wind sector into the bedrock of its energy system, but some questions are being asked
Three quarters of Dutch power will come from wind by 2031, the chief of the Netherlands Wind Energy Association predicted, shortly after the government opened bidding for each of the Ijmujiden Ver offshore wind sites, known respectively as Alpha 2GW and Beta 2GW.
Interested parties can hand in bids between up to March 28 for the twin far offshore zones in the North Sea, in what is the country’s largest tender for wind at sea so far.
“The success of offshore wind energy has exceeded all expectations,” NWEA chairman Jan Vos said, in a message to the Dutch public.
“IJmuiden Ver will be the largest wind energy area in Europe. As early as 2031, wind energy will supply 75% of the electricity from your socket.”
The tender for the first two sites of the Ijmuiden Ver zone will be followed by an auction for two areas called Ijmuiden Ver Gamma and Nederwiek I, due to conclude in March 2025 and attain first power in 2029 and 2030 respectively.
They are part of a series of offshore wind tenders intended to catapult Dutch offshore wind capacity to 21GW by 2031.
The Netherlands, with 4.7GW in operation already, today has Europe’s third-largest offshore wind capacity after the UK (14.8GW) and Germany (8.5GW), according to WindEurope figures.
Negative bidding
But the Dutch wind industry is not satisfied with all aspects of the ambitious offshore wind expansion plan, amid criticism that the rules adopted by the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) will allow ‘negative bidding’ over a fee for the seabed, unlike previous tenders.
The government will allow a maximum financial bid of €8.4bn ($9.1bn) per GW, or €33.6bn for all 4GW on offer.
Backers argue that the tender still includes a plethora of so-called qualitative criteria on environmental aspects. circularity, and system integration.
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