Germany: First positive results for Trianel Windpark Borkum are in

"On 1 March, the wind farm had been in operation for exactly six months, and following a difficult construction and commissioning phase it is developing very positively," says Klaus Horstick, managing director of Trianel Windkraftwerk Borkum GmbH & Co. KG, about the successful power balance of the Trianel Windpark Borkum.

Since the commissioning on 1 September 2015, the offshore wind farm has generated 452.33 gigawatt hours (GWh) of electricity. January 2016 was the month with the highest yield so far with 95.12 GWh. The technical availability of the 40 wind turbines during the first expansion phase was more than 90 percent. "With the Trianel Windpark Borkum, the municipal utilities have taken the plunge and gone offshore, thus investing in a valuable project. From the start of construction until the commissioning of this new technology, a great deal was demanded of the shareholders; as it turns out, their perseverance was worth it," explains Horstick. The forecasts for the current business year anticipate that the wind farm will considerably exceed 4,000 full-capacity hours.

Currently, the already fully approved second expansion phase of the Trianel wind farm Borkum (TWB II) is being developed with an additional output of 200 MW in a joint venture between EWE AG and Trianel. Based on current plans, the final construction decision will be taken in the first half of 2017. EWE currently holds a 40 percent share in the project development. A participation structure for the construction of the second expansion phase has not yet been decided on. The distribution of ownership will be decided in 2016. "There is great interest among the municipal utilities in further offshore exploration," Horstick emphasises. "The existing infrastructure such as the transformer platform and the connection to the grid as well as the expected yield data make TWB II very economically attractive." The EU-wide tender processes are currently underway for individual subsections such as the wind turbines, foundation structures and inner park cabling, which also serve to make the final cost estimate for the second expansion phase. 

Construction began on the wind farm with 40 wind turbines, which is located about 45 kilometres off the coast of Borkum, in September 2011. From July 2013, all 40 AREVA Wind M5000-116 model wind turbines were erected, generating a total power output of 200 MW, in just under eleven months. However, construction plans were delayed after the grid connection was moved several times by the transmission system operator, which also delayed the commissioning of the wind farm.