15-year offtake Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) signed for first two phases of the world’s largest offshore wind farm
24 November 2020: SSE Renewables and Equinor, the joint venture partners co-developing the 3.6GW Dogger Bank Wind Farm in the North Sea, have announced today that 15-year offtake Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) have been signed for the first two phases of the world’s largest offshore wind farm.
Separate PPAs for a total of 2.4GW across both Dogger Bank Wind Farm A and B have been concluded with external offtakers Ørsted (40% share) and Shell Energy Europe Limited (20% share), and with sponsor offtakers Danske Commodities (20% share) on behalf of Equinor and SSE Energy Supply Limited (20% share) on behalf of SSE Renewables. The agreements are subject to Financial Close on Dogger Bank A and Dogger Bank B, which is expected shortly.
The deals to buy the power generated by the first two phases of the wind farm follow the conclusion of a competitive bidding process. Taken together they represent the largest set of PPAs completed to date in a tender process for a renewable energy project in the UK energy market.
Ørsted will have trading and balancing responsibility for 960MW while Shell Energy Europe, SSE Energy Supply and Danske Commodities will have responsibility for 480MW each of installed generation capacity across Dogger Bank A and B.
Steve Wilson, Dogger Bank Wind Farm’s Project Director at SSE Renewables, said:
“Today’s announcement that we have concluded offtake Power Purchase Agreements for Dogger Bank A and B marks one of our final milestones ahead of reaching financial close soon for what will be the world’s biggest offshore wind farm. These agreements with leading energy trading companies will ensure the renewable energy generated by the first two phases of Dogger Bank Wind Farm can be sold into the GB electricity market, delivering on our promise to power millions of British households with green energy.”
Halfdan Brustad, vice president for Dogger Bank at Equinor, said:
“We are delighted to announce offtake agreements for Dogger Bank A and B. Despite the current global challenges, the project is really moving forwards and this tangible milestone brings us one step closer to Financial Close. Large-scale renewable energy projects like Dogger Bank are not only crucial for the UK to reach its net zero ambitions, the project will bring many economic benefits to the UK in terms of jobs and supply chain opportunities. We are proud to be contributing to a just energy transition and supporting the Government’s 10 point plan for a green industrial future.”
Morten Buchgreitz, Executive Vice President and CEO of Ørsted Markets & Bioenergy, said:
“We’re very pleased with the signing of this agreement which underlines our position as a leading energy trading company in the UK. Handling a 15-year trading agreement with the Dogger Bank Wind Farm is indeed in line with our vision to create a world that runs entirely on green energy. We’re very much looking forward to our cooperation.”
Rupen Tanna, general manager for power at Shell Energy Europe, said:
“We are proud to support the world’s largest offshore wind farm through a long-term agreement that will help us to meet the evolving energy needs of our customers. As the UK Government underscored earlier this month, offshore wind will play a key role in the UK’s transition to a low-carbon future.”
Tor Mosegaard, Danske Commodities’ VP, Head of European Power Trading, said:
“The Dogger Bank PPA is a great addition to our long-term portfolio and it shows our commitment to British renewables. Danske Commodities has traded power in the UK for more than ten years and we see PPAs as a crucial part of ensuring the continued development of renewables. As Equinor’s power trading arm and route-to-market for renewable power production, we help turn green ambitions into an economically viable business – one wind farm at a time.”
Gordon Bell, Commercial Director of Energy Portfolio Management for SSE Energy Supply, said:
“We are delighted to secure this PPA for Dogger Bank, bringing green energy from the world’s largest offshore wind farm to customers across the UK, while supporting SSE’s ambition to treble its renewable electricity output by 2030. The renewable energy produced by Dogger Bank will play a key role in greening the UK’s electricity generation and driving the transition to a net-zero future.”
Dogger Bank Wind Farm is a joint venture between SSE Renewables, who are leading the construction of the offshore wind farm, and Equinor, who will operate the 3.6GW project during its lifetime of at least 25-years. When completed, Dogger Bank will be the world’s largest offshore wind farm.
Due to its size and scale, the overall wind farm is being built in three consecutive 1.2GW phases; Dogger Bank A, Dogger Bank B and Dogger Bank C. Each project is expected to generate around 6TWh of electricity annually.
Dogger Bank Wind Farm secured 3.6GW of offshore wind contracts in the UK Government’s 2019 Contracts for Difference (CfD) auctions. The CfDs awarded provide overall price certainty to each phase of Dogger Bank Wind Farm for a period of 15 years.
The offtake PPAs being announced today for Dogger Bank A and Dogger Bank B cover a matching 15-year term from the start of the CfDs awarded to each project. The commercial power agreements provide a route to sell the green energy generated by both wind farms into the GB electricity market when they each enter operation.
Dogger Bank Wind Farm is located over 130km off England’s north-east coast and will be capable of powering up to 4.5 UK million homes each year when complete in 2026.