Dutch state grid company TenneT has awarded 11 contracts worth a total of $25 billion to develop a system to connect North Sea wind farms to the coast. TenneT has a multi-year agreement with a consortium led by Hitachi Energy and General Electric. Petrofac, which is part of a consortium led by Hitachi Energy, surged 73% following the announcement.

The contracts cover eight Dutch and three German 2GW grid-connected systems, all for commissioning until 2031. The proposed connection system will convert the alternating current generated by the wind turbines to direct current at an onshore converter station for general use.

TenneT will oversee 40GW of capacity, nearly two-thirds of the 65GW offshore wind target agreed by Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark and Belgium in 2022 by 2030. Chief Operating Officer Tim Meyerjürgens said in a statement that this is one of the most important infrastructure projects of this century; the green transition of the energy system is key to decarbonizing industry. TenneT seeks to transform the North Sea into a green energy powerhouse for Europe.

innovative business model

GE announced that it will lead two consortiums with a combined value of $10.8 billion. The company will work with Sembcorp Marine on three projects in the Netherlands and with Mc Dermott on two projects in Germany.

Philippe Piron, CEO of GE GridSolutions, said: “Together with our consortium partners Sembcorp Marine and Mc Dermott, we are honored and delighted to play a key role in this critical infrastructure project for Europe’s energy security and decarbonisation.

Hitachi Energy and Petrofac signed a $14.14 billion deal to build six different projects. Five will be connected to the Dutch grid and one to the German grid. Petrofac claims it has secured the key resources and yard capacity needed to expedite the first two projects in TenneT's groundbreaking programme. Niklas Persson, Managing Director of Hitachi Energy’s grid integration business, added that this innovative business model will set the course for integrating large volumes of offshore wind and provide visibility into the future.Editor/XingWentao