Offshore wind in the Baltic States
Commissioned by the Netherlands Enterprise Agency

Offshore wind in
the Baltic States
A 2023 update to the export markets assessment for
the Dutch offshore wind sector in Estonia, Latvia and
Lithuania.

2023
by Pondera Consult, June 2023.
1 ReportJune
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Commissioned by the Netherlands Enterprise Agency and the Embassies of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Baltic States

Scope of report
This 2023 report presents a market research on the export opportunities for the Dutch
offshore wind sector in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuanian for the short and medium term (1-3
years), commissioned by the Embassies of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Baltics,
and executed by Pondera Consult. The market research is an update to the existing Blix
market study ‘Export Markets Assessment for the Dutch Offshore Wind Industry – Estonia,
Latvia and Lithuania’ published in 2021.
Baltic context
Offshore wind energy greatly contributes to containing global warming and it isfundamental to reaching Europe’s 2030 and 2050 Climate and Energy targets in a costeffective way. Today there are over 20GW of offshore wind installed in European waters,of which around 2.8 GW in the Baltic Sea. But currently none yet in the Baltics.
2023 is gearing up to be an exciting year for offshore wind in the Baltic States. With thefirst tenders due within the next months, the project pipeline includes several offshore windprojects due to be commissioned within this decade, totaling up to 6-8 GW with a potential
market value that may reach well over EUR 20bn. The Baltic States region offers great
market opportunities for the Dutch industry across the offshore wind manufacturing andservice sectors such as research, site studies, technical design, transport and installation,foundations, operations and maintenance, and R&D services.
Dutch context
This report is part of a one-year activities programme financed by the Netherlands
government with the ultimate goal to set up a Dutch private sector consortium andPartners for International Business (PIB) programme focused on offshore wind in theBaltic countries. Other activities this year comprised of a trade mission to Estonia andLatvia in April and an incoming visit of delegates from the Baltic countries in May 2023, as
well as a trade mission to Lithuania (Vilnius / Klaipeda) after the summer, and participationof delegates from the Baltic countries in the OEEC event in November 2023.

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

Table of contents

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

01

Baltics offshore wind market and policy update

0402Dutch supply chain assessment

33

03

Opportunities in the Baltics

39

04

Recommendations

43

Baltics offshore wind market and policy update

4June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Baltic States and the Baltic Sea
Introduction
The Baltic Sea is bounded by 8 EU member states and stretches from Lapland to theNorth of Germany. The sea has a total area of more than 380.000 km² and is thelargest expanse of brackish water in the world. The Baltic Sea is bounded by
Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, andSweden. The Baltic Sea has enormous potential for offshore wind, but today it has
just over 2.8 GW of installed capacity (mostly in Danish and German waters). The 8
countries have in 2022 committed to increase the capacity to 19.6 GW by 2030 andthey plan to consider a 2040 target at a later stage.
Currently, none of the installed wind farms in the Baltic Sea have been installed in the
Exclusive Economic Zones of the three Baltic States. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania
have agreed to commission the first offshore wind farms before 2030 with tenders
starting in 2023.
The Baltic States jointly have an estimated area of 18% of the total Baltic Sea,
Estonia being the largest with 36,500 km² (9.2%), followed by Latvia with 28,500 km²(7.2%) and Lithuania with 6,400 km² (1.6%).

Offshore wind potential
According to the European Commission, the Baltic Sea has a high potential foroffshore wind energy due to shallow sea depths (< 50 meter) and high wind speedswith an average around 10 m/s at a height of 150m.
The Baltic Region will be a key part of Europe’s offshore wind industry and crossborder cooperation will play a large role, especially between the Baltic States. Crossborder cooperation with other European countries is in its initial phase. The joint
Latvian and Estonian project ELWIND, which might result in 1 GW of capacity, is an
example of such cooperation. The need for more offshore wind is present but how toreach this potential is subject to policy changes and supply chain challenges.

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://enseccoe.org/data/public/uploads/2022/05/offshore-wind-farms_2.pdf
Source 2: https://maritime-spatial-planning.ec.europa.eu/sea-basins/baltic-sea-0
Source 3: https://windeurope.org/newsroom/press-releases/baltic-sea-countries-sign-declaration-for-more-cooperation-in-offshore-wind/
Source 4: https://estonianworld.com/opinion/how-the-baltic-sea-countries-can-shield-europe-from-russias-energy-weapon/

Baltic States and the Baltic Sea
Maritime spatial plan
The European Union (EU) maritime spatial plan (MSP) directive required coastal Member
States to submit their Maritime Spatial Plans to the European Commission by March 31st,
2021. This plan gives an indication on the proposed offshore wind development areas ineach Exclusive Economic Zone and provides information regarding zones in which
offshore wind cannot be developed to stimulate marine protection. Areas where
NATO radar systems are present have been considered in cooperation with the Helsinki
Commission (HELCOM) and Visions and Strategies Around the Baltic Sea (VASAB).
Under the MSP, areas have been located and energy security has become even more
important following the Russia-Ukraine war. NATO is aware of the challenges,
but routinely assesses security trends in the region and is now checking energy security
as well, especially following offshore wind development under the MSP. The Baltic States
are planning to become a giant in green technology with a mix of innovation and green
technology which should lead to the reduction of the ecological footprint of the region.
The Baltic States handed in very ambitious targets for 2030, and Estonia and Lithuania
are amongst the top five highest relative ambitious countries for renewable energy
development in the next 10 years. According to VASAB the Baltics States could evenraise their ambitions to:•Estonia could allocate 1,850 km2 (5% of its EEZ) to develop 9 GW of offshore wind•

Latvia could allocate 300 km2 (1% of its EEZ) to develop 4 GW of offshore wind•

Lithuania could allocate 644 (9.4% of its EEZ) to develop 2.4 GW of offshore windpotentially leading up to 3.3 GW

The Baltic States are planning to improve energy security, reduce the dependence fromenergy imports and match the increasing demand following heating electrification,transport electrification and electrification of the industry.

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://vasab.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/BalticLINes_project_findings_2019.pdf
Source 2: https://www.espon.eu/sites/default/files/attachments/ESPON%20BT%202050%20_%20Main%20Report_0.pdf
Source 3: https://vasab.org/theme-posts/maritimespatial-planning/msp-country-fiches/

Baltic States and the Baltic Sea
Offshore wind energy policy
All the countries surrounding the Baltic Sea have signed the “Baltic Declaration for Offshore Wind Energy” in 2022. The goal is to accelerate the development of offshore windenergy and to coordinate and optimize activities leading to the full energy potential of the Baltic Sea. The declaration is also known as the Marienborg Declaration. The goal isspecifically to 1) electrify industry, 2) increase renewable fuels, 3) diversify and decarbonize gas-networks, 4) increase sector integration, 5) a green hydrogen economy and 6)
necessary transmission and pipeline infrastructure.
The countries recognized that speeding up the permitting process is crucial and that long processes slow down the realization of the targets. The permitting processes will be
simplified, and the first tenders are launched in 2023.
On top of this, a Letter of Intent was signed between the governments of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania on the one hand and the government of Denmark on the other hand.
This letter extends the cooperation term from 2023 until 2025 with the focus on developing offshore wind by initiating multi- and bilateral cooperation. The goal is to shareknowledge, experiences, data and best practices. All Baltic Countries could benefit greatly from knowledge sharing, institutional collaboration and international partnerships.
These ambitions acknowledge the importance of the Baltic Sea. The Baltic Sea is of international importance as well for breeding and wintering birds. It is part of a system ofworldwide migration routes through which tens of millions of birds transit each year while flying from their breeding sites to their wintering grounds. To protect and preserve habitats
and bird population, all European countries including the Baltic States have obligations under national and international legislation to preserve and protect bird populations.

Offshore wind targets in the Baltic Sea
One of the main goals of the Marienborg Declaration is to reduce energy dependency from Russian gas. The countries will be working together to increase theinstalled offshore capacity from the current 2.8 GW to around 19.6 GW by 2030, which is an increase in the target of around 10 GW compared to 2020. Along with offshore windcapacity the focus will be on cooperation for international grid systems and LNG as a fuel in the short term.
The total potential for wind energy capacity is up to 93 GW according to the Declaration and the goal is to use the first stages of offshore wind farms to attract investors anddevelopers and to identify how the targets can at best be reached.
Germany and Denmark are determined to further increase their capacity, Poland wants to realize 6 GW by 2030 and 11 GW by 2040. Finland wants to have its first-large windfarm by 2026-2027 and another one by 2028. In Sweden, 15 GW of offshore wind projects are currently applying for permits. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania all want to commission
their first offshore wind farms before 2030.

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://www.iea.org/policies/12652-baltic-declaration-for-offshore-wind-energy
Source 2: https://kefm.dk/Media/637975446760224128/Letter%20of%20Intent_310822.pdf

Baltic States and the Baltic Sea
Grid infrastructure
Coordination
between the Baltic States and grid operators to create offshore
infrastructure is needed. The Baltic States Transmission System Operators (TSO) AS
Elering, AST and Litgrid entered into an agreement to establish a Baltic Regional
Coordination Centre (RCC) based in Tallinn. The aim is to perform tasks related toplanning of power systems, especially offshore. The RCC shall complement the role of
the TSOs in a cross-border cooperation by moving from a national focus to a cross-border
focus. Following these ambitions, German TSO 50Hertz and the three Baltic TSOs havesigned a Letter of Intent to agree on a joint hybrid submarine cable project called Baltic
WindConnector in the Baltic Sea between Estonia and Germany. This cable will bearound 750 kilometers long and should secure supply and could allow Baltic States tobecome an exporter to the German market.
European TEN-E Regulation
In June 2022, the European TEN-E Regulation was adopted to establish the rules for EU
cross-border energy infrastructure. One of the intentions is to develop integrated offshore
electricity grids and related interconnectors in the North Sea, Irish Sea, English Channel
and the Baltic Sea. According to the TEN-E regulation TSOs must publish offshore griddevelopment plans for the Baltic Sea area at the beginning of 2024. Under the new
regulation, permitting provisions to accelerate the implementation of offshore grid for thetarget of 300 GW in 2050 are being prepared and facilitated.
Baltic Energy Market Interconnection Plan
According to the Baltic Energy Market Interconnection Plan (BEMIP), interconnection
between Member States in the Baltic region will be developed. It is a priority corridor for
the EU to end the energy isolation of the Baltic States, to improve the internal grid and tofoster market integration.
The TSOs of the three Baltic States are de-synchronizing from the Russian andBelarussian electricity system and instead synchronize their grids with the Continental
European Network (CEN) through the existing interconnection between Lithuania and
Poland and through the Baltic WindConnector mentioned before.

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://eepublicdownloads.blob.core.windows.net/public-cdn-container/tyndp-documents/TYNDP2022/public/RegIP-2022-BS.pdf
Source 2: https://energy.ec.europa.eu/topics/infrastructure/trans-european-networks-energy_en
Source 3: https://www.50hertz.com/en/News/FullarticleNewsof50Hertz/13472/50hertz-and-estonian-transmission-system-operator-elering-to-build-submarine-cable-between-estonia-and-germany
Source 4: https://energy.ec.europa.eu/system/files/2022-12/Infrastructure_factsheet_BEMIP.pdf
Source 5: Studzieniecki (2022)

Estonia
Policy plan
In the past years, Estonia has developed specific offshore wind energy targets
in its policies and strategies.
The “National Development Plan of the Energy Sector until 2030” from 2017,set out a target for the use of renewable energy sources accounting 40% of
total expected annual electricity demand in 2030. At the end of 2022, theEstonian government endorsed a list of activities to facilitate and speed up thecountry’s transition to the use of renewable energy, with the focus on windenergy, and set this goal to 100%.
The “Estonia’s 2030 National Electricity and Climate Plan” published in 2023,
names the development of windfarms (including offshore windfarms) as one of
the main actions for the energy sector until 2030. The key issue mentioned forthe energy sector, concerns the connectivity to the European grid network. The
report highlights the offshore wind potential of Estonia: in the upcoming years
until 2030, 14 offshore windfarms with a total installed capacity of 7 GW and anannual energy production of 26 TWh can be developed and realized around thecoast of Estonia. The western coastal area of Estonia has been identified as the
key offshore wind energy development area (see map to the right). The
potential for wind energy development for these areas is roughly 7000 MW in
total (area 1: 3000MW, area 2: 4000 MW and area 3: 150 MW). However, theabove mentioned total installed capacities is an indication since much will
depend on the future developments between the areas.

9June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://faolex.fao.org/docs/pdf/est199996.pdf,
Source 2: https://news.err.ee/1608695428/estonia-sets-2030-target-for-renewable-only-electricity
Source 3: https://www.mkm.ee/en/energy-sector-and-mineral-resources/energy-economy/national-energy-and-climate-plan
Source 4: https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/9590cdee-cd30-11e9-992f-01aa75ed71a1/language-en

Estonia
Maritime spatial plan
The Estonian Maritime Spatial Planning is part of the “National Spatial Plan Estonia
2030+” published in 2022. In the Maritime Spatial Planning, the Western coastal areas
have been mapped as the most suitable offshore wind areas (see map above to the right).
The Northern coastal areas of Estonia were excluded for offshore wind purposes, due tonational-defense interests. Offshore wind farms may be planned in the mapped areas byproviding the offshore wind farm sufficient distance to mainland and permanently
inhabited islands, preserving heritage and nature conservation assets, migrations
corridors and by ensuring the national-defense interests. Within the national MSP, tworegional MSPs cover specifically the Hiiu islands and Pärnu Bay area.

The Maritime Spatial Plan is currently focusing on the principles of the spatial
development instead of focusing on a detailed scale.

Offshore grid infrastructure plans
AS Elering is the Estonian state-owned national company responsible for thedevelopment of the grid infrastructure. AS Elering, together with the other Baltic TSOs, iscurrently integrating Estonia and the other Baltic countries to the European grid
infrastructure. Moreover, Estonia is currently synchronizing its power grid with the otherBaltic countries. According to the current plan, Estonia will be completely decoupled fromthe Russian system and integrated to the European grid system in January 2026.
The grids on the largest islands of Saaremaa and Hiiumaa need to be upgraded to beable to integrate larger amounts of renewable energy. Grid upgrades on Saaremaa could
be classified as ‘overriding public interest’ in line with REPowerEU. Since the national
stakeholder meeting (NSM) in September 2022 this recommendation has been followedby the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications, who has issued guidelines tothe transmission system operator Elering for planning a 330kV transmission line to
Saaremaa.

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June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://www.fao.org/faolex/results/details/en/c/LEX-FAOC197091/,
Source 2: https://www.fin.ee/en/state-local-governments-spatial-planning/spatial-planning/maritime-spatial-planning
Source 3: https://news.err.ee/1608666562/economy-ministry-wants-special-plan-from-hiiumaa-offshore-wind-developer
Source 4: https://planeerimine.ee/hiiu-mereala-ruumianaluus/

Estonian maritime spatial plan

The Estonian Maritime Spatial Plan is characterised by thefollowing long-term trends:

11•

The use of marine area will intensify.

•

New uses, such as renewable energy andinfrastructure, will emerge.

•

Traditional uses will diversify.

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source: https://maritime-spatial-planning.ec.europa.eu/sites/default/files/download/estonia_november_2022.pdf

Estonia
Policy plan and projects waves
To further enable offshore wind energy projects, the government is combining expert groups of ministries and market participants with the purpose of mapping possible
cooperating countries. Lists of possible joint projects and measures with a clear overview of all the possible project in Estonia will be shared with the cooperation parties and will
be updated in the upcoming years based on the development plans.
The set of offshore wind farms will be done in two phases. The first phase projects are planned to be completed in 2028 and consists of three large projects being:•

The project by Saare Wind Energy & Van Oord (6 TWh yearly)•

The project by Enefit Green (4 TWh yearly)•

The project by Utilitas (6 TWh yearly)

Second wave
The second wave of projects holds several tenders and permit applications. In March 2023, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications stated that the permit application
procedure time will be reduced, and the current three permits will be combined to one permit for the development of an offshore windfarm. In 2023, the Ministry invited developers
to apply for an area within the proposed areas following the MSP.
When a developer applies for an area with a proposed size, the Ministry will take this as a base and the Ministry will send it back to the developer after assessing the area. The
developer improves the application and re-applies. This happens in the period of May 2023 to August 2023. Most of these applications will overlap. The applicants are qualified
based on 12 points that focus on the environmental considerations, the economic strength of the application and the period of developing and construction.
After the assessments and the qualification of participants, the tenders will be carried out in the form of auctions where price will be the only criteria and in November 2023 thesuperficies license procedure starts. The tender periods of multiple areas is expected to be between September and October. The competitive tender minimum requirements are:•

A 75 sq km area•

A Starting price of €15 000

The actual size and number of turbines of these areas is thus not decided upon yet and is decided upon by the winning developer.

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

Sources: The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communication and the Estonian Wind Power Association

First and second wave projects
First wave
The first wave projects consist of the three areas of Saare Wind Energy, Utilitas
and Enefit Green.

Second wave
The second wave projects consist of the other areas with many wind farm
applications overlapping because the applications are smaller than theoriginally proposed areas as drawn in the figure on the right. The ELWIND
project belongs to this second wave of projects.
In April 2023, there were more superficies license areas applications than the
35 that correspond to the MSP. The government and wind farm development
dashboard can be accessed via the link in the sources.
Saare Wind
EnergyUtilitas

Enefit Green

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June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source: The Estonian Wind Power Association
The wind farm dashboard can be accessed via: https://xgis.maaamet.ee/xgis2/page/app/TTJAhoonestusload

Estonia
Relevant authorities
Stakeholder

Role

Ministry of Economic Affairs & Communications

The Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority(CPTRA) manages the state consent process

Ministry of FinanceManages the process of spatial planning

Ministry of Environment

Responsible for the Strategic Environmental Assessment(SEA)

AS Elering (grid operator - TSO)

Issues grid connection permits

Permitting procedure
1. State consent: The consent is given by the Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority (CPTRA). In case more than one party is interested, a tender for stateconsent shall be organized. A state consent is valid for 3 years (extension of 2 years possible). Within this time period the developer is obliged to commence the construction
activities of the offshore wind farm.
2. Permit for the special use of water & Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA): The permit is granted by the Ministry of Environment. The Water Act is the most relevant
legislation affecting the development and planning of offshore wind farms. An EIA is mandatory for offshore wind farm development under the Environmental Impact
Assessment and Environmental Management System Act.
3. Construction permit: The permit is granted by the Ministry of Economic Affairs & Communications based on the Building Act.
4. Permit for use of the construction and generate electricity: The Electricity Market Act enacts the authorization to use a site in an area of public water and generate electricity.
The Estonian government has announced that they are intending to simplify the permit granting process and development process of renewable energy projects. The timeline ofthis development is yet to be set.

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://blixconsultancy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Offshore-wind_Market-study-Baltics_Results.pdf
Source 2: https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/9590cdee-cd30-11e9-992f-01aa75ed71a1/language-en

Estonia
Offshore wind projects
The following table provides an overview of the offshore projects currently being planned/developed in Estonia:

15

Project
name/area

StatusComment

Capacity

Expected
operation
date

OwnersELWIND

Tender will be held 2026. Connection is secured by theStates. Pre-studies have been carried out by thegovernments.

The total area consists of an Estonian area
and a Latvian area.

700-1000
MW

2030

Governmentsof Estonia
and Latvia fornow. Tenderwinners later

Hiiumaa / Hiiu

Permitting on hold. Preliminary design and technicalanalysis completed at the end of 2022. EIA nearcompletion.

Wind area was reassessed but with current
developments the permits are expected to be
granted. Project was already initiated in
2006.

1100 MW2030

Enefit Green

Kihnu Islands /Tuuletraal

Awaiting permit. EIA programme proposed in 2020,
including FS on hydrogen production.

Kihnu Island residents are worried about thedevelopments.

350 - 1050
MW

2028

Tuuletraal
OÜ

Liivi OffshoreOÜ (Gulf ofRiga)

EIA currently on-going and to be completed by 2024.
Analysis of technical solutions was finished in 2022.
National specific plan for grid connection to becompleted by 2026.

The most advanced offshore winddevelopment in the Baltic States to date.
The construction permit was alreadysubmitted in 2010.

1000 MW2028

Enefit Green(Before: Eesti
Energia) in
joint venturewith Ørsted

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://elwindoffshore.eu/
Source 2: https://balticwind.eu/the-preliminary-design-of-the-hiiu-offshore-wind-farm-will-be-completed-by-autumn/
Source 3: https://www.4coffshore.com/windfarms/estonia/tuuletraal-estonia-ee12.html
Source 4: https://liivimeretuulepark.ee/en/projekti-info

Estonia
Offshore wind projects
The following table provides an overview of the offshore projects currently being planned/developed in Estonia:

16

Project
name/area

StatusComment

Capacity

Expected
operation
date

OwnersSaaremaa

In permitting application process.

Construction activities start in 2026. Van
Oord is a shareholder as well.

1400 MW

2028

Saare Wind
Energy and
Van Oord

Saare-Liivi 1-5(Gulf of Riga)

EIA approved by CPTRA. Technical and financial
preparation is ongoing. Aim to obtain construction
permits in 2025.

Potential largescale hydrogendevelopment.

1200 MW

2028

Utilitas

SW 1-13

Concept/Early planning
Submitted applications.

13 submitted applications near Hiiumaa andSaaremaa islands.

Up to1000MW+-

Sunly OÜJune 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://www.swe.ee/en/
Source 2: https://saareliivituulepark.ee/en/
Source 3: https://www.4coffshore.com/windfarms/estonia/
Source 4: https://investinestonia.com/estonias-emerging-offshore-wind-tech-innovation-and-manufacturing-hub/Latvia
Policy plan
“Latvia 2030 - Sustainable Development Strategy of Latvia until 2030” was published in2010 on behalf of the Ministry of Regional Development and Local Government. In thereport, it is mentioned that in 2030, 50% of Latvia’s total final energy consumption will
come from renewable energy sources and that wind power (mainly onshore) willaccount up to 15% of the electricity production. In the report it is also stated that
potential offshore wind farms may be hindered due to lack of regulation and due to thehigh costs of wind farms, therefore implementation of wind farms shall be done
gradually.
“Latvia’s National Energy and Climate Plan 2021-2030” was published in 2020 andstates the principals for the long-term planning concerning energy and climate policy(see map). In the plan the task of implementing an international project for theconstruction of the Estonian-Latvian offshore wind farm (ELWIND) in the period up to2030 has been confirmed.
Due to financial reasons, Latvia aims to use its onshore potential first and the offshore
potential will possibly be developed in the future. Following an estimate in the plan,
Latvia has the potential to develop 29 offshore wind farms with a capacity of 15.5 GW
and an annual production of 49.2 TWh. Before high-capacity wind projects can be
implemented in Latvia, the limiting factors need to be considered such as: the spatialplanning conditions, administrative barriers and the limited capacity of the transmission
system need to be remedied.
Some offshore developments are moving slowly, but regulation is missing as of now.
Estimates by the Latvian Wind Energy Association states that the Ministry of Climate &Energy is gathering information on how auctions work. The State will not execute priorsea-bed research or environmental assessments or use a Contract for Difference
system because the offshore wind energy will almost all be exported.

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://www.pkc.gov.lv/sites/default/files/inline-files/LIAS_2030_en_1.pdf
Source 2: https://www.em.gov.lv/en/national-energy-and-climate-plan-2021-2030

Latvia
Offshore grid infrastructure plans
Augstsprieguma tīkls (AST) is a state-owned company responsible for the grid
infrastructure in Latvia. Currently, AST is building two transmission lines between
Latvia and Estonia as a part of the grid synchronization with Europe. The
transmission line between Valmiera (LV) and Tartu (EE) is estimated to be readythis year (2023) while the second transmission line between Valmiera (LV) andTsirguliina (EE) is estimated to be finished next year. According to AST, thesynchronization of the Latvian grid to the European electric power networks isplanned for 2025 (see figure to the right).
Latvian and Estonian transmission system operators AST and AS Elering are
responsible for infrastructure development and connections to the electricity
transmission networks in each country respectively and are also together
involved in the implementation of the ELWIND project. In 2021, AST and AS
Elering conducted a route study for possible project infrastructure connection
options, as well as a marine technical catalogue study for possible offshore
infrastructure options and costs. AST is involved in all the development
processes of this project.

Maritime spatial planning
The “Maritime Spatial Plan for Internal Waters, Territorial Waters and Exclusive
Zone of the Republic of Latvia” lays down the maritime spatial planning until
2030. In the report, the Northern part of Gulf of Riga as well as the high sea near
the cost of Kurzeme are identified as the most suitable locations for offshore
wind. Theoretically, it is possible to develop an offshore wind farm with an
installed capacity of 800 MW in each research area with a total of 4 GW (see next
slide: areas marked in orange are considered as research areas for winddevelopment).

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June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://ast.lv/lv
Source 2: https://www.varam.gov.lv/en/maritime-spatial-planning
Source 3: https://ast.lv/sites/default/files/editor/AST_10GAP_2023_2032_ENv6.pdf

Latvian maritime spatial plan

The Latvian Maritime Spatial Plan is characterized by thefollowing long-term trends:

19•

Issues with shipping, ports, nature conservation, coastal
tourism, cables and scientific activities will arise in thesea•

New uses, such as renewable energy and infrastructure,are emerging•

Marine aquaculture and oil extraction are also feasible.

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source: https://maritime-spatial-planning.ec.europa.eu/sites/default/files/download/latvia_nov2022.pdf

Latvia
Relevant authorities
Stakeholder

Role

Ministry of Climate and Energy

Responsible for area determination, tendering and licensing.
Manages the process of spatial planning

State Construction Control Bureau

Responsible for construction process and its legality

Augstsprieguma tīkls (grid operator - TSO)

Issues grid connection permits

Permitting procedure
As a first step, the developer is required to apply for a site which must be included in the areas designated for offshore development in the MSP. After the application is acceptedby Ministry and the Cabinet Order and the area has been approved, the Ministry will announce a tender concerning the right to use the area in the sea. The winner of the tender
receives the following licenses:
1. License for Use of Area in the Sea: The license is valid for 30 years.
2. License for Research Area in the Sea: The license is required for the obligatory Environmental Impact Assessment and is valid for 2 years.
3. License for Exploitation: This license is issued after the constructed wind farm is approved by the State Construction Control Bureau. The license has the same expiry date as
the license for use of area in the sea.

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June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://blixconsultancy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Offshore-wind_Market-study-Baltics_Results.pdf
Source 2: Study in Baltic offshore wind energy cooperation under BEMIP countries (2019)
Source 3: Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Latvia (2023)

Latvia
Offshore wind projects
The following table provides an overview of the offshore projects currently being planned/ developed in Latvia:

21

Project
name/area

StatusComment

Capacity

Expected
operation
date

OwnersELWIND (=Research Area
E4)

Tender will be held 2026. Connection is secured by theStates. Pre-studies have been carried out by the States.

The total area consists of an Estonian area
and a Latvian area

700-1000
MW

2030

Governmentsof Estonia
and Latvia for
now, tenderwinners later

Kurzemeoffshore windproject

Application has been submitted. The area will be subject
to an upcoming tender process.

EIA will be conducted once the research
license is obtained.

1000 MW2030

Eolus and
PNE

To be
announced

Memorandum of Understanding signed between theparties. Initial studies conducted by Eolus.

Development of offshore projects outside theLatvian coast.

1000 MW2030

RWE andLatvenergo

Research areas
E1, E2, E3, E5(E4 = ELWIND)

Areas determined. Research shall be issued by Ministryof Economics.

-

At least
one area
up to 800
MW

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://elwindoffshore.eu/
Source 2: https://www.rwe.com/en/press/rwe-renewables/2022-09-16-rwe-and-latvenergo-team-up-on-offshore-wind-in-the-latvian-baltic-sea/
Source 3: https://www.pne-ag.com/en/newsroom/news/article/eolus-and-pne-start-co-developing-offshore-wind-in-latvia

Lithuania
Policy plan
The Lithuanian government prepared in 2018 the "National Energy
Independence Strategy" which defines Lithuania’s long-term goals forrenewable energy. The targets of this strategy for Lithuania’s final electricity
consumption sourced from renewables is 30% by 2020, 45% by 2030 and 80%
by 2050. For power generation alone, the country aims for a renewables shareof 45% by 2030 and 100% by 2050.

Offshore wind policy
It is expected that wind power (mostly onshore) will cover more than half of therenewable energy sources for electricity generation in 2030 and 2050. In the"National Energy and Climate Action Plan of the Republic of Lithuania for 20212030“ from 2019, 700 MW of installed offshore wind capacity is predicted by
2030. To achieve this, a Government Resolution was adopted in June 2020 tobuild and start operation of the first 700 MW offshore wind farm by 2030.
On 31 March 2022, the Lithuanian parliament adopted a package of legislation
approving the development of offshore wind energy in its territorial waters. The
amended Law on Renewable Energy and Electricity sets out the conditions forthe offshore wind tenders.
The National Energy Regulatory Council (VERT) launched the first tender on
the 30th of March 2023 and the second is expected in September 2023. The
EIA for the first tender should be executed by the winning developer. The EIA
for the second tender is almost finished.
The Ministry of Energy has identified four offshore windfarm areas that could
eventually be developed off the Lithuanian coast (see map to the right). The
capacity and timing of these potential projects will depend on future researchand completion of infrastructure and other preparatory work.

22

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://www.iea.org/articles/lithuania-electricity-security-policy
Source 2: https://www.rivieramm.com/news-content-hub/news-content-hub/lithuania-adopts-offshore-wind-law-paving-the-way-for-2023-auction-70495
Source 3: https://www.vpvb.gov.lv/lv/media/3585/download

Lithuania
Offshore grid infrastructure plans
Pursuant to the Law on Electricity, LitgridAB is the state-owned TSO of Lithuania, responsible for thedevelopment and operation of the national grid infrastructure.
In June 2022, Litgrid AB released The Development Plan of the Electric System and Transmission Grid
2022-2031. The Plan is prepared in accordance with the National Energy Independence Strategy(NEIS) and the National Energy and Climate Action Plan for 2021-2030 (NECP). Like the TSOs of theother Baltic States, Litgrid is currently focusing on the works of desynchronization from the Russian
power grid and synchronization with the European power grid. The main goal is the connection of the
Lithuanian electric power system with the continental European networks (CEN) for synchronous
operation and renewable energy sources integration.

Another goal of the state is the rapid increase in electricity production from renewable energy sources.
For this purpose, the generation of green electricity is promoted and expanded. It is planned for 2030 tohave a network of 1.4 GW of offshore wind power plants, 3.6 GW of onshore wind power plants and 2
GW of solar power plants.
Considering the approved NEIS, the development of the two planned 700 MW offshore wind farms withan installed capacity of 1400 MW is anticipated. The connection of these offshore wind farms
developed in phase I (planned until 2028) to the 330 kV network does not require additional 330 kV TS
development on land. Since the ownership boundary is planned at the Darbėnai switchyard on the rearcoupling, the entire marine (including part of the land cable) infrastructure (marine cable and platform)
will be owned and developed at the producers’ expense. LitgridAB will not own or operate this (part of)
infrastructure.

23

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://blixconsultancy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Offshore-wind_Market-study-Baltics_Results.pdf.
Source 2: https://www.litgrid.eu/index.php/grid-development-/-electricity-transmission-grid-ten-year-development-plan/3851
Source 3: https://www.litgrid.eu/uploads/files/dir618/dir30/dir1/12_0.php

Lithuania
Maritime spatial plan
In September 2021, Lithuania has adopted its new Comprehensive Plan (itssecond) that includes maritime spatial planning. The Lithuanian version isavailable at the portal of spatial planning documents (see link below). The
strategic section called the Concept of Comprehensive Plan for the territory of
the Republic of Lithuania (CPRL) was approved by the Parliament on 4 June
2020.
The first maritime spatial plan was elaborated as a part of the Comprehensive
Plan for the Republic of Lithuania by including a section on “Maritime
territories“. The “Maritime territories” section was adopted by the Parliament of
the Republic of Lithuania in 2015. This plan expired in 2020 and the newComprehensive Plan is now in force.
The objectives of the first MSP were: to ensure the transparent, known
conditions of the uses of the territory in the whole state and in the space underresponsibility of the Republic of Lithuania, and consequently, to implement aplan for the land and sea territory in one document.
In the former plan, various suitable areas for offshore wind development are
identified within the borders of the Exclusive Economic Zone of Lithuania.
Currently, the upcoming two tenders are in the largest yellow area as seen to
the right.

24

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://maritime-spatial-planning.ec.europa.eu/countries/lithuania
Source 2: https://www.litgrid.eu/index.php/grid-development-/-electricity-transmission-grid-ten-year-development-plan/3851
Source 3: https://www.tpdris.lt/lt_LT/web/guest/sarasas by entering plan number: K-NC-00-17-288, choosing “Rengimo etapas“ and then “TPD sprendiniai(aiškinamasis raštas ir brėžiniai)
Source 4: https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Concept-of-development-of-maritime-activities-Compiled-by-V-Jurkin-2014_fig5_268218585

Lithuanian maritime spatial plan

The Lithuanian Maritime Spatial Plan is characterised by thefollowing long-term trends:

25•

The relatively small area accommodates four mainnavigation routes, several ports, a UNESCO World
Heritage site, Natura 2000 sites, offshore military areas,near shore fishery bars and offshore fishing areas•

Future uses such as planned underwater high voltage
electricity link to Sweden and offshore wind energy areas
or sand extraction areas•

The balance between nature protection and recreation

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source: https://maritime-spatial-planning.ec.europa.eu/sites/default/files/download/lithuania_july_2022.pdf

Lithuania
Relevant authorities
Stakeholder

Role

Ministry of Energy

Coordinates and assigns parties to prepare EIA, wind andgeotechnical studies

Ministry of Environment

Authorizing of the MSP, sets the environmental requirements
for the development permit and EIA, grants construction permit

National Energy Regulatory Council

Assessment and granting of the development permit

Litgrid AB (grid operator - TSO)

Responsible for the onshore grid and possible also for the
future grid.

Permitting procedure
Even though legislative ground for offshore wind development was laid in May 2011 and the Government criteria for the first offshore wind tender by January 2013, there was nolegislation that allowed developers to perform seabed surveys and technically this prevented any development works for offshore wind projects until the amended Law on
Renewable Energy and Electricity. Figures on the next two slides present the timeline of the first two 700 MW offshore wind tenders in Lithuania.
Before the expected auction with state-aid later in 2023, the Ministry of Energy ensures the preparation of technical studies such as: the Strategic Environmental Assessment(SEA), the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), detailed maritime plan for the area, wind energy studies and seabed surveys. After all these necessary studies are prepared,
all the interested developers need to follow the following permitting steps to develop their project for the specified area:
1. Development Permit, developers will bid in the auction for the right of the Development Permit for a period of 41 years, including a Contracts for Difference subsidy for a periodof 15 years (currently under discussion by the Parliament).
2. Construction Permit, the developer needs to apply with their own offshore wind farm design for a construction permit from The State Territory Planning and Construction
Inspectorate under the Ministry of Environment.
3. Generation Permit.

26

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://blixconsultancy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Offshore-wind_Market-study-Baltics_Results.pdf
Source 2: Study in Baltic offshore wind energy cooperation under BEMIP countries (2019)

Lithuania
Preliminary timeline offshore wind project (Lithuanian tender 1)
For this tender, developers had until the end of May 2023
to register and submit the documents.
The tender winner gets a 41-year development andexploitation permit, and is required to build the offshore
wind farm, substation and electrical infrastructure till the
TSO connection point and should compensate the TSO
for reaching this connection point. The winner must build
a substation as well.
A Contracts for Difference system is not applied as
opposed to the next tender but there is a possibility ofstate-aid. If developers refuse state-aid, they bid for acertain fee.
The maximum production capacity is 700 MW for thistender, so the installed capacity may be higher.

27

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source: Lithuanian Wind Energy Association

Lithuania
Preliminary timeline offshore wind project (Lithuanian tender 2)
For this tender, developers have until the end of 2023 toregister and submit the documents. The tender is
expected to be opened by September 2023.
The tender winner gets a 41-year development andexploitation permit, and is required to build the offshore
wind farm, substation and electrical infrastructure till the
TSO connection point and should compensate the TSO
for reaching this connection point. The winner must build
a substation as well.
A Contracts for Difference system is applied. The
maximum installed capacity for this tender is 700 MW.
Contrary to the previous project, state-aid in the form ofsubsidies from the Lithuanian government is potentiallyavailable for this tender.

28

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source: Lithuanian Wind Energy Association

Lithuania
Offshore wind projects
The following table provides an overview of the offshore projects currently being planned/ developed in Lithuania:

Project name/area

StatusComment

Capacity

Expected
operation date

Owners/Initiators

Lithuanian Tender 1

Tender issued

The National Energy Regulatory Council (VERT)
launched tender on 30 March 2023. Deadline for bidders
is 60 calendar days from the date of publication of thecompetition notice.

580 - 700 MW

2028

Government of
Lithuania (Ministryof Energy)

EIA finished.
Windmeasurement,
geological andgeotechnicalstudies ongoing

Tender expected to be launched in autumn 2023
(September). On 19 April 2023 EIA public presentationand information event in Palanga.

700 MW

2028

Government of
Lithuania (Ministryof Energy)

Offshore wind farm in the Baltic
Sea (near Palanga)
Lithuanian Tender 2
Offshore wind farm in the Baltic
Sea (near Palanga)

29

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://www.vert.lt/elektra/Puslapiai/J%C5%ABrinis%20projektas/Konkursas-organizuojamas-pagal-AIE-istatymo-221-str--nuostatas(netaikant-skatinimo).aspx
Source 2: https://offshorewind.lt/en/

Port Analysis
Baltic States
In order to develop offshore wind energy, massive investments are needed in offshore grid,vessels and port facilities. The presence of port infrastructure is a prerequisite for manufacturing,assembly and installation infrastructure to deliver offshore wind farms.
In the Marienborg Declaration for offshore wind farms, the Baltic States recognize the need forport improvements and the possibility to use the EU Recovery Funds for this is taken into
consideration. Port infrastructure investments will be able to create local income andemployment and other Baltic countries could also make use of the ports. This will strengthen
regional cooperation.
To secure a short-term supply, four projects in the Baltic States are proposed for the role ofregional LNG import terminals. The proposed projects are in the ports of Klaipeda (Lithuania),
Skulte (Latvia), and Paldiski and Tallinn (both Estonia). These developments show that ports are
subject to several developments and offshore wind development is one of them.
As can be seen on the right, almost all major ports are located on the Western coast. For
marshalling, assembling, installation, and maintenance and operations these locations are
strategically located in the Baltic Sea region. However, in order to be competitive these ports needto develop in a specific niche of the offshore wind farm development instead of wanting to do it all.
It is expected that only 1 or 2 marshalling ports are needed in the Baltic States, if even developedwith regional Baltic Sea port competition.

30

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://www.skultelng.lv/en/regional_lng_terminal/
Source 2: https://www.ts.ee/en/port-of-tallinn-will-build-a-new-quay-in-paldiski-south-harbour-to-service-wind-farms/
Source 3: https://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/map/Baltic-Sea-map

Port Analysis
Estonia
The Port of Tallinn will build a new multipurpose 310-m quay with a 10-hectare area beyond theexisting quay in Paldiski South Harbor. 53 million euros will be invested in this, and the investment
is co-invested by the European Commission with an amount of 20 million euros. The new quay will
be used for military purposes and for construction and subsequent maintenance of offshore windfarms and is expected to be completed in 2025.
The Port of Tallinn further wants to be the base port to provide services. The Port of Saaremaa isless suitable to be a marshalling/assembly base port but could be used an operations &maintenance port. The shipping company in the Port of Tallinn, TS Shipping, owns the ice breaker
vessel.

LatviaAccording to the Latvian MSP, there is a desire for future development of the shipping sector, andthis shall be matched by the development of large ports and optimal shipping conditions. Latvian
ports will have to adapt to technological developments and until now have no experience with
offshore wind farms. The Latvian ports call on the energy sector to provide them with support andcontribution to the development of ports. Furthermore, the Latvian ports have been meeting anddiscussing with ministry representatives about their future roles and strategy regarding offshorewind.
The Liepaja port has the best position for working in the offshore wind sector and being the baseport. The Liepaja port is connected with the gas pipeline network. However, Ventspils and Riga
ports recently have been focusing in a more strategic way on renewables as well. The geopoliticalcontext has forced Latvian ports to reprofile themselves in order to remain competitive andoffshore wind belongs to this reprofiling.

31

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source: https://portofklaipeda.lt/en/port-2/

Port Analysis
LatviaLatvia has three major ports: Liepaja, Riga and Ventspils as wel as seven small ports – Skulte,
Mersrags, Salacgriva, Pavilosta, Roja, Jurmala and Engure located among the entire Latvian
border. With its central location and multiple ports, Latvia could become an important hub fora marshelling/assembly port and operations & maintenance ports of offshore wind farms.
For example the ELWIND farm area is located in the Kurzeme region, between Liepaja andVentspils, offering great opportunity for the ports to develop capacities supporting OW.
The port of Salacgriva is the closest port for 2 Estonian OWF that are in EIA process (Enefit
Green/Orsted and Utilitas). Salacgriva has a very good location to support the construction and
O&M activities of wind farms in Gulf of Riga. Notwithstanding that currently the port does not fit
with port requirements to support OW yet.
By collaborations between ports and the neighboring countries, the use of its ports could be
optimized. Ports in Latvia seem to move ahead of Latvian offshore wind farms as they areplanning to get funding and finalize improvements before 2027.

Lithuania
In Lithuania, the port of Klaipeda is investing 27 million euros to upgrade its infrastructure to
support the construction of the country's planned 700 MW offshore wind farm. The developments
will be carried out together with Klaipeda Sea Cargo Company. Lithuania does have ships that
can import goods and can be used to maintain wind farms, but Lithuanian ports will need more
improvements.
According to the Lithuanian Wind Power Association, developing port infrastructure will be thebiggest challenge in the development of offshore wind energy in Lithuania.

On the Smelte peninsula, the quays will be reconstructed to accommodate for the loading andassembly of wind turbines. Around 20 hectares of land will be used for these activities. Klasco, for
its part, undertakes to build the relevant superstructure32

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source 1: https://vasab.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/BalticLINes_project_findings_2019.pdf
Source 2: The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Latvia (2023)
Source 3: https://portofklaipeda.lt/en/naujienos/the-port-of-klaipeda-launches-the-creation-of-infrastructure-needed-for-an-offshore-wind-farm/Dutch supply chain assessment

33

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Supply Chain offshore wind farms

Government andinstitutional support:• Wind measurements• Workshops on tendersystems• Site selection• Route map creation• Regulation consultancy• Knowledge sharing via
institutions anduniversities• Trade mission andnetwork creations
Infrastructure support:• Port improvements• Tender proposals• Consortium• Contracting Structure• Financing• Environmental Impact Ass.
• Power Purchase Contracts• Wind turbine foundation
supply• Support structure supplier• System engineering• Intra array cabling• High Voltage Offshore Station• H2 production, storage,
pipelines

Feasibility, design &development

Technology supply,engineering & development• Logistics on land
• Logistics offshore• Transport & Installation,
mooring, wind turbine,inter array cables, export
cables, HV station• Commissioning• Access systems for
personnel, small
components and heavy
components• HSE protection system• Maintenance planningsystem, performancemonitoring• Environmental monitoring
Operations &MaintenanceTransport &Installation

Technical total project design• Site characterisation• Integrated wind farm design: windfarm lay-out, wind farm control, windturbine rating & dimensions• Intra array cabling• Export connection• Grid connection• Integrated support structure & transport
concept• H2 production & storage• Inter array piping• Export pipelines

Pre-competitive R&D. Education & Training• Wave and wind characterization

34

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source: Dutch Wind & Water Works• H2 Systems• H2 – Electricity integration• Re-use of foundations• Recycling/Re-use• Remanufacturing
End-of-life
solutionsDutch supply chain assessment
In the table below, the Dutch supply chain is assessed and Dutch companies, company groups and product services are stated below. From this, the opportunities have been
derived in the following chapter. Dutch companies have a strong (international) market presence which has the potential to grow even further. To compare, a benchmark is set withcompanies in the UK and in Denmark. The framework is based on the study by BLIX (2021) and the Wind & Water Works Manual.

35

Service

Status Dutch companies

Benchmark UK & Denmark

Feasibility, design anddevelopment: Development(consultancy) and project
management

Dutch companies have offered national and international parties theirknowledge on project management, legal advice, early stage consenting
and tender support. Offshore wind consultants have significant knowledge
on planning and engineering consultancy as well and this knowledge is ofuse for Baltic and international developers. Especially contracting
management between (Dutch) construction & installation companies anddevelopers can take projects to the next phase.

Denmark and the United Kingdom both have several major
offshore wind project developers, such as Ørsted A/S,
Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners A/S, Copenhagen Offshore
Partners A/S, and Shell, BP, SSE Renewables, E.ON UK, Centrica
plc. These developers have extensive experience in developing
offshore wind projects in Europe and can be strong competitorsfrom Dutch companies in the Baltic States.

Feasibility, design anddevelopment: Environmental
Impact Assessment and Ecological
Surveys

Dutch companies have executed EIAs for the Dutch government and fordevelopers and can assist in, or fully execute EIAs for Baltic governments
or for developers as well, depending on the country and offshore wind
policy. Offshore wind farms in the Baltic States are in early phases thus
Impact Assessments are important for current and future plans. Special
focus needs to be put on seabirds in this area, and Dutch bird-detection
systems are capable of detecting birds to temporarily stop wind farms.

For EIAs and Ecological surveying, the Dutch firms can expect
strong competition from particularly Danish consultancies like
COWI A/S, K2 Management, Ramboll and Niras. Besides, UK firms
are among the market leaders in undertaking survey work for UK
wind farms, such as ESS Ecology and Gardline, and have a longstanding strength in offshore surveying.

Feasibility, design anddevelopment: Site investigation

Estonian companies have applied for all sorts of sites, including overlap.
However, more specific geotechnical and geophysical studies need to
identify specific sites and Dutch companies have a strength in offshoresite surveying, resulting from offshore oil and gas operations. Dutch
companies can deliver seabed analysis and geotechnical analysis, cableroutes and wind measurements which are important in the upcoming
years.

The UK have a good understanding of site investigation, however
the international scope of the companies offering the services islimited.
For site investigation, moderate competition can be expected from
Danish firms. For geotechnical surveys, Dutch companies have astrong record and were awarded contracts in Denmark.

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Dutch supply chain assessment

36

Service

Status Dutch Companies

Benchmark UK & Denmark

Design and manufacturing: Turbine
foundation and component supply

Dutch suppliers can supply parts of wind farms and assemble thoseat the offshore site. Moreover, Dutch companies have a strong
presence in monopile supply and have good experience with shallow
water depths.

Denmark has a world leading position in the construction andengineering of wind turbines with Vestas Wind Systems A/S, LM
Wind Power and MHI Vestas Offshore Wind. Contrary toDenmark, the United Kingdom has no major wind turbine
manufacturers.

Design and manufacturing: Sealing,
corrosion protection and subsea
cabling

Due to a history with oil and gas and installed offshore wind farms,
Dutch companies can provide solid steel protection and bolting
fixation to decrease the possibility of damage.
Dutch companies have experience with connecting turbines to an
offshore station from which the power is transmitted to onshore. This
experience is of help in the Baltic States where developers are mostly
responsible for subsea cabling.

A key competitor in the UK is CWIND, who has expertise in
subsea survey solutions, corrosion protection, and they perform
subsea IMR. CWIND has a fleet of 17 vessels supporting this.
However, they are not active in the Baltics.
In terms of sealing, corrosion protection and subsea cabling
there are a few big players in the Danish market that focus on
more than offshore wind and other markets than the Baltic
market.

Design and manufacturing:
Substations and foundations

Dutch suppliers and engineers have a strong position in terms ofknowledge and engineering and supplying ability to provide offshore
wind farms with substations. Dutch companies can support
in substations and foundations from the design of the substation andplatform to the construction using foundations.

Smulder Projects is a UK subsidiary from one of the dominant
players for design, engineering and production of foundations
and substations. Other companies are subsidiaries as well.
Strong competition can be expected from the Danish
substations and foundations sector which knows a few large
and internationally operating firms such as Bladt Industries,
SemcoMaritime and Welcon.

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Dutch supply chain assessment

37

Service

Status Dutch Companies

Benchmark UK & Denmark

Transport and installation: Turbine
and foundation installation

Due to the oil and gas history, Dutch companies are world leaders in
the installation of offshore turbines and foundations. Installationcompanies are even working on faster development and higher
efficiency. Some Dutch heavy lift vessels are used exclusively inoffshore wind and the expectation is that there will be a coming
shortage of installation vessels due to high ambitions.

Although the Dutch supply chain is strong in this area, somecompetition can be expected as Danish firms, such as Cadeler
and Global Wind Service operate internationally as well. The
foundation fabrication market is partly dominated by the Dutch
supply chain.

Transport and installation: Substation
installation and cable laying

Dutch suppliers of substations are the same as turbine andfoundation installation as these structures are similar to offshore oiland gas platforms. Dutch companies can provide engineering andinstallation of substations. Moreover, Dutch suppliers have a goodtrack record in undertaking cable installation and engineering. In theBaltics, such knowledge is of use.

The UK market knows some dominant players with JDR for
cable laying and HVSS for substation services. Danish firms
operate internationally and provide cable laying services anddesign of substations. Competition is to be expected.

Transport and installation: Installation
tools, vessel design, ship building
and deck equipment

Dutch suppliers are well-known for their installation tools anddesigning and delivering all types of vessels and this role will evengrow. Dutch companies have a lot of knowledge on how to put cranes
and cable-handling equipment on vessels and how to use this in theoffshore wind sector. Crane companies, lifting equipment companies,
hammers and customized installation equipment can be found in the
Dutch offshore sector.

The UK knows some large offshore supply chain vesselcompanies such as Clarksons and a UK subsidiary of Spanish
company Navantia. The UK has some high-speed building shipbuilding companies as well. A Danish firm such as Knud E.
Hansen operates in Vessel Design, but dominance in this areaof the Dutch market can be expected.

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

Dutch supply chain assessment
Service

Status Dutch Companies

Benchmark UK & Denmark

Operations and maintenance:
O&M and inspection and repairs

Dutch suppliers have significant experience in using crew transfer
vessels from onshore to the wind farm to transport technicians andspares. Dutch companies provide both crew transfer vessels andservice operations vessels and are able to identify issues with windfarms to repair these on time. Dutch knowledge on how to repair
different sorts of maintenance issues is large.

The O&M supply chain is growing as installed capacity grows,
but firms are expected to focus on the UK market.
Competition can be expected from Danish firms as the industry
is executing O&M services for decades, with companies such as
Harco and Niras.

Operations and maintenance: Port
development and logistics

Dutch ports are in public ownership and have timely developed
master plans that incorporate offshore wind installations facilities.
Dutch ports have been improved with manufacturing, assembly andinstallation infrastructure. Dutch companies can provide consult on
how to develop and improve ports and can decide which ports needcertain improvements based on the location and role of the port.

The Dutch market regarding Port development knows somevery strong players that can deliver port improvement anddevelopments. UK ports invest a lot in port improvements but
are privately operated and focus more on commercial factors
than supply chain improvement.
The Danish company Niras (UK-based as well) provides assistin planning, design and delivery during port developments witha focus on offshore wind.

Government and institutional support

To foster knowledge sharing it is important to establish networks andcreate public-private partnerships. Dutch companies and institutions
work well together and create consortiums. Moreover, Dutch
Enterprise Agency RVO, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and theMinistry of Economic Affairs gather and invite companies forinternational trade missions to establish close links with(inter)national partners.

The UK and the Netherlands operate in trade missions to theBaltic States and Denmark is creating world’s first energy
island. Denmark is able to provide support on supply chain
improvements following a long history, whereas Dutch
companies and universities can help deliver institutional support
to Baltic governments and universities.

Key Dutch companies:
Leading offshore installation contractors are Heerema, Boskalis, and Seaway7. Also Huisman, supplier of most offshore cranes, monopile grippers and other offshore tools is
Dutch, as well as hammer supplier IHC. Companies like Bargemaster and Seaqualize are supplying state-of-the-art motion compensation tools.

38

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

Opportunities in the Baltics

39

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

Opportunities in the Baltics
Estonia
First wave projects of Enefit Green, Saare Wind Energy & Van Oord,
Utilitas:
First wave projects are progressing in the first project phase (as described in
the Dutch supply chain chapter) of Feasibility, Design & Development. The
Environmental impact assessments (EIAs) are ongoing and nearly completed(2/3 months in between them). Opportunities for Dutch firms are in the laterstage of this first phase with services such as project management, additional
ecological surveys and site assessments, and in particular with services andproducts (as described on page 36) for the Technology supply, Engineering &Development phase in the short term (2023-2025). Followingly, in the midterm(onwards from 2025) major opportunities lie in the Transport & Installation
phase, due to supply chain restraints and full order books installation vessels
need to be booked much earlier in 2023/2024 (this applies to all three
countries).
Second wave projects (47 superficies, 13 different developers identified
so far):

The tendering process starts in 2023 with price as key requirement.
Opportunities for Dutch firms lie in the near future (2023-2025) in the firstproject phase of Feasibility, Design & Development with for example windmeasuring campaigns/ wind resource assessments, environmental impact
assessments and surveys, wind farm layouts and technical design support, etc.
Furthermore, opportunities are in port developments and logistics andgovernment and institutional support (as described on slide 38).

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source: The Estonian Wind Power Association

Opportunities in the Baltics
LatviaELWIND project (research area 4):
The project is currently in the process for approval of its feasibility study phase.
And followingly, the process of the sea-bed and environmental impact
assessments will commence. Opportunities for Dutch firms in the short term
(2023-2025) are in this first phase of Feasibility, Design & Development, suchas in technical consultancy, owner’s engineering, tender management.

E5
E4

Research areas 1, 2, 3, 5:

The project phases of these areas are still in its infancy and the development of
national regulations and auction model is yet to be finalised by the Latvia
government. Opportunities for Dutch firms lie in the near future (2023-2025) in
offering support to the Latvian government about the Dutch approach and in the
Feasibility, Design & Development phase (as described on slide 35). In
particular, wind measurement campaigns, surveying, scanning andidentification of new wind farms areas within these 4 research areas, andfeasibility studies.
Revision of the Maritime Spatial Plan is worked on by the Ministry and theLatvian Wind Energy Association is suggesting to go beyond the 5 researchareas that have been selected. Currently, however, projects have to operate
within the 5 existing areas. The auctions will not happen at the same time andtendering is expected to take place by the end of 2025/2026. Opportunities for
Dutch firms in the Technology supply, Engineering & Development phase, andTransport & Installation phase are not expected before 2025. In the meantime,
opportunities do lie in supporting port developments and logistics andgovernment and institutional support (as described on slide 38).

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source: http://mereala.hendrikson.ee/kaardirakendus-en.html

E3

E1

E2

Opportunities in the Baltics
Lithuania
Lithuanian tender 1 (green area):
The tender has closed at the end of May 2023. In the short term (2023-2025),
opportunities for Dutch firms lie with the developer who wins the auction thissummer (expected to be Ignitus) in the first project phase of Feasibility, Design& Development. For example, in wind measurement campaigns, surveying,
EIA, wind farm layouts, feasibility studies, technical design support, project
management, and site assessments. Additional opportunities lie in the midterm(2025 onwards) in the Design and manufacturing project phase (as describedon slide 37).
Lithuanian tender 2 (red area):
For this project, the environmental impact assessment is finished and windmeasurement, geological and geotechnical studies are on-going in the firstproject phase of Feasibility, Design & Development. In the short term (20232026) opportunities for Dutch firms are in the later stage of the first phase (asdescribed on slide 35) with the auction scheduled for September 2023 inservices such as site assessment, technical consultancy, auction and tendermanagement, and owner’s engineering, and the Technology supply,
Engineering & Development phase for foundations and subsea cabling as
examples. In the midterm (2027-2030), opportunities arise in the Transport &Installations phase.

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

Source: https://www.vpvb.gov.lv/lv/media/3585/download

Recommendations

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

Recommendations
Dutch Embassies in the Baltic States•

Keep offering bilateral policy support on best practices and learned lessons in offshore wind from the Netherlands and presenting the insights of the Dutch Approach to therelevant ministries of the Baltic States related to offshore wind development and regional authorities and TSOs, and build on the recent offshore wind trade missions to theBaltics and the Netherlands in 2023 to facilitate both the three domestic markets and the regional cooperation in the Baltics.

•

Run a series of events/ webinars/ conferences dedicated to offshore wind developments in the Baltic States with Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian and Dutch experts, with a shortterm focus (2023-2025) on Dutch companies in the first (Feasibility, design and development) and second (Design and manufacturing) project phases, inviting the Dutch firms
in the Transport and installation and Operations and maintenance third and fourth project phases (see Dutch supply chain chapter).

•Run a series of B-2-B and K-2-K events in the Baltics with Dutch experts and researchers, in collaboration with local counterparts, from ports such as Port of Rotterdam,
Groningen Seaports, and the Ports of Den Helder, IJmuiden, and Vlissingen, and technical research universities (the 4TU) and universities of applied sciences in the
Netherlands.

Promotion of the Baltic States offshore wind opportunities•

Invite the various Baltic developers (such as ELWIND, Enefit Green, Latvenergo, Ignitus, Saare Wind Energy, Utilitas) to dedicated study tours and business mixers in the
Netherlands and organize factfinding trips to the Baltics and follow-up meetings between the Baltics and Dutch industry after the recent trade missions organized in 2023.

•

Support the Baltic developers and Baltic TSOs in finding business interest in the Netherlands for their project developments in the Baltics by finding partners, investors,
financers, contractors and consultants from the Netherlands who have services, products and expertise matching their needs.

•

Organize for the Dutch industry business and matchmaking events/ webinars in the Netherlands with the support of NWEA, the Baltic States Wind Energy Associations and theBaltic States Embassies to discuss the offshore wind developments and opportunities in the Baltic States.

Promotion of Dutch companies and offshore wind expertise in the Baltics

44•

Engage with the three Baltic States authorities, local offshore wind and renewable energy industries, port authorities and wind energy associations to promote the Dutch
offshore wind industry.

•

Join key offshore wind and renewable energy conferences, events and roadshows in the Baltics and present the Dutch offshore wind industry and expertise.

•

Organize site visits to Dutch offshore sites and harbours for a variety of Baltic States stakeholders: regional and state authorities of the three Baltic States, TSOs, local
developers and other stakeholders.

•

Organize matchmaking and supply chain meetings in cooperation with networks such as NWEA, HHWE, Wind & Water Works, Northern Netherlands Offshore Wind (NNOW)
and AYOP with local Baltic States networks.

June 2023
Offshore wind in the Baltics

About Pondera
Pondera is a globally operating planning and development consultancy. We
support our public and private sector clients in developing renewable energy
projects, from the initial feasibility phase of the project throughout contracting,construction to successful operations. Pondera has extensive experience insmall & large onshore and offshore wind energy projects. With our experiencein offshore wind projects worldwide totaling over 16 GW in capacity, we believe
we are a good partner for international and Baltic States developers,
consultants, and governments.
Eric Arends
Director international markets+31 6 53372130
e.arends@ponderaconsult.com
Matthijs de Haan
Renewable energy consultant+31 6 46020128
m.dehaan@ponderaconsult.com
Bastiaan Bor
International business developer+31 6 577882227
b.bor@ponderaconsult.com

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Offshore wind in the Baltics

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© Netherlands Enterprise Agency | July 2023
Publication number: RVO-155-2023/RP-INT
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