Swiss power production and distribution utility BKW and OWP Butendiek, an offshore wind farm based in northern Germany, have signed a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA).
Starting in July 2024, BKW will purchase 18% of its total production at a fixed price - approximately 200 GWh hours per year from the Butendiek offshore wind farm, which has an output of around 288MW.
The PPA enables BKW to greatly expand its renewable energy portfolio and supply customers with clean electricity. According to BKW, by purchasing electricity at a fixed price over multiple years, it strengthens the investment security of producers and enables the financing of new renewable energy projects.
Amanda Niklaus, Head of Renewables PPA Origination at BKW, said: “It’s nice to see our portfolio developing and that we are playing an increasingly important role in the PPA market. We are pleased to enter the offshore wind market with this agreement, placing us as a serious PPA counterparty.”
Butendiek is an offshore wind farm in the German part of the North Sea, located 32km off the island of Sylt, and 53km from the mainland. The wind farm is owned by a consortium consisting of CITIC Pacific Limited, Industriens Pensionsforsikring, ITOCHU Corporation, Greencoat Renewables, Octopus Energy Generation and wpd.
Construction of the wind farm began in spring 2014 west of the island of Sylt. The 80th wind turbine was installed in June 2015. At that time, more than half were already in operation. Full commissioning followed in August 2015.
Björn Nullmeyer, Butendiek’s Director and CFO at wpd (development and operation of wind farms and solar parks), added: “This PPA is ideal as it provides us with additional investment and planning security over many years. It has been a strong cooperation which is very important to us. We are pleased with the negotiations with BKW and look forward to the continued collaboration.”