The Netherlands will start the tendering procedure for the Borssele I and II offshore wind farms on 10 April, following the last month’s adoption of the amendment to the Electricity Act 1998 which allowed further development of offshore wind energy projects in the country.
The window for submitting bids will remain open until 12 May, the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO.nl) said. RVO.nl also published a revised Project and Site Description (PSD) ”designed to help any party with an interest in participating in the planned SDE+ grant and permit tender for Borssele Wind Farm Sites I and II.”
The tendering procedure for Borssele III and Borssele IV wind farms is scheduled to close by September 2016, RVO.nl said without revealing when the tender will start.
The call for tenders for Borssele I and Borssele II was initially scheduled for December 2015, but the procedure was pushed back after the Dutch Senate rejected the Stroom bill, delaying the legislative decision-making process and jeopardizing the completion of the grid connections for the first offshore wind farms in the Borssele zone.
Several consortia and companies have already expressed their interest in developing the two wind farms, including the Dutch oil and gas major Shell .
The Borssele Wind Farm Zone is divided into five sites. Sites I, II and IV can accommodate 350MW plus 30MW overplanting. Site III can accommodate 320MW plus 30MW overplanting. Site V is for innovations and can accommodate 20MW.
TenneT TSO will build grid connections and construct two offshore substations in the wind farm zone.