National Offshore Connections

For the first time, the current 2023 National Grid Development Plan (German: Netzentwicklungsplan, NEP) names two national offshore grid projects in the North Sea. In each case, an Amprion offshore system will be connected to a partner TSO's offshore system on the seaward side via a direct current cable. The aim of these national offshore interconnections is to reduce onshore grid bottlenecks and increase redundancy when connecting offshore wind parks. This will allow TSOs to transport more electricity from the north to the south, increasing system security. The NEP analyses and evaluates onshore connections to the grid in order to investigate offshore interconnection. These near-load onshore connections of offshore systems are called offshore grid connection points (German: Netzverknüpfungspunkte, NVP).

The NEP identifies the offshore grid connection systems (German: Offshore-Netzanbindungssystem, ONAS) with the NVP Kusenhorst (Amprion) and Blockland (TenneT TSO) as the first interconnection, which is confirmed by the  German regulatory agency (Bundesnetzagentur, BNetzA). The second offshore grid connection project is identified as the NVP Hardebeck (TenneT TSO) and Kriftel or Ried (Amprion).