EnBW Postpones Investment Decision on German Offshore Wind Farm

EnbW Energie Baden-Wuerttemberg AG (EBK), Germany’s third-largest power supplier, postponed a decision to invest more than 1.5 billion euros ($1.9 billion) in a wind farm in the North Sea.

While the utility remains committed to the 500-megawatt Hohe See project, it has halted negotiations with potential suppliers until it’s clear when the farm would be connected to the grid, EnBW said today in an e-mailed statement.

“We need legislative clarity and reliable conditions before we make an investment decision of considerably above 1.5 billion euros,” Hans-Josef Zimmer, EnBW’s chief technology officer, said in the statement.

The delay is a further setback to developers eager to meet Germany’s target of 25 gigawatts of sea-based turbines by 2030. It adds to pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government to help end the delays. Dong Energy A/S said last month it suspended work on a North Sea wind farm because the company lacked a deal on connecting it to the grid.

Germany’s federal government may change the regulation of wind-farm links. A draft bill, endorsed by Merkel’s cabinet in August, is designed to end the delays and provide investment security.

To contact the reporter on this story: Stefan Nicola in Berlin at snicola2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Reed Landberg at landberg@bloomberg.net