Authorisation

The wind farms that are to be connected to the transmission network are located in what is called the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). This extends up to twelve nautical miles – around 22 kilometres – from Germany’s North Sea coast and is under licensing law the responsibility of the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH). The first step on the path to authorisation is the so-called spatial planning. This is essentially implemented in accordance with the Site Development Plan, which is drawn up by the BSH. In addition, the BSH is required to carry out a planning approval procedure. The authority also issues the authorisations for construction and operation of the converter platforms and cables in the EEZ.

The territorial waters extend from the North Sea coast into the North Sea a total of twelve nautical miles. Responsibility for this zone lies with the state of Lower Saxony under authorisation law.

The Weser-Ems Regional Development Agency defines a route corridor in the regional planning plan or regional impact assessment.

The Lower Saxony State Authority for Road Construction and Transport (NLStBV) is responsible for the planning approval procedure also required in this zone.

In the onshore section of the routes, underground cables are laid between the coast and the respective grid interconnection points. These routes must be as spatially and environmentally compatible as possible, ideally by bundling them with existing power line infrastructures. In a first step, so-called route corridors are defined in regional impact assessments (RIAs). The RIA for Lower Saxony is the responsibility of the Weser-Ems Regional Development Agency, while the one for North Rhine-Westphalia is carried out by the relevant district government. In the subsequent planning approval procedures, the exact route is sought in the route corridors identified in the RIA. For that section of the route than runs through Lower Saxony, the State Authority for Road Construction and Transport (NLStBV) is responsible for approving the underground cable sections in the planning approval procedure; in North Rhine-Westphalia, it is the relevant district government.

The onshore converter stations convert the incoming direct current into alternating current so that the renewable energy can be fed in to the transmission network. They are connected to the existing substation at the respective grid interconnection points via an AC line. Depending on the manufacturer and local conditions, the area required for these converter stations can be around ten hectares. There are basically two options for gaining approval: a planning approval procedure conducted by the planning approval authority responsible for the respective offshore project or an approval procedure in accordance with the Federal Immission Control Act initiated with the responsible immission control authority.