Press Release: Expansion of offshore wind energy in the first half of 1
Berlin, July 23, 2025. As of June 30, 2025, 1.639 offshore wind turbines with a total capacity of 9,2 GW were connected to the grid in Germany. A further 1,9 GW are under construction, 3,6 GW have received a final investment decision, and 17,5 GW have been awarded contracts. This was determined by the consulting firm Deutsche WindGuard on behalf of the German offshore wind energy industry associations and organizations. The Borkum Riffgrund 3 wind farm, with an expected capacity of 959 MW, is completed, but due to delays in the construction of the grid connection system, it will not be able to feed electricity into the grid until 2026.
The industry is therefore working hard to transform the energy system. To ensure this transformation is successful, the BWO is calling for clear political decisions on the introduction of bilateral contracts for difference (CfDs) as part of the tender design for offshore wind energy starting in 2026.
Statement by Stefan Thimm, Managing Director of BWO:
"Up to 30 percent cost reduction potential is possible through a reform of the tendering design. Offshore wind can thus make a decisive contribution to significantly reducing electricity costs in Germany – for households as well as for industry.
The current tendering rules largely date back to 2021. Since then, the framework conditions have changed significantly without the necessary adjustments. This year's auctions demonstrate: investor interest is declining, and bid amounts have plummeted by over 90 percent compared to previous years. This is due to regulations such as blanket overplanting, rigid implementation deadlines, and a lack of safeguards.
Our goal is to enable a climate-neutral and competitive industry in Germany. Offshore wind can make a cost-reducing contribution to this – if the right political course is set now."
Joint press release of the associations: Cost-efficient expansion requires adjustment of course by the federal government
- Tender design must be fundamentally revised this year – For security of supply and cost efficiency of offshore wind energy
- The offshore wind industry needs planning security – through sustainable targets and the introduction of a framework for sustainable revenue structures this year.
- Implementation deadlines for technical operational readiness must be adjusted – implementation realism for a reliable project flow of large-scale projects
Berlin, Bremerhaven, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Rostock, July 23, 2025 – As of the reporting date June 30, 2025 were 1639 offshore wind turbines with a total 9,2 gigawatt (GW) capacity in Germany connected to the grid. Plants with further 1,9 GW are under construction. The final investment decision is for projects with a capacity of 3,6 GW Further projects with a combined capacity of 17,5 GW have been awarded contracts but have not yet been commissioned. This was determined by the consulting firm Deutsche WindGuard on behalf of the German offshore wind energy industry associations and organizations.
The German government has a responsibility to set the necessary energy and industrial policy course to ensure that as many projects as possible can be realized in the future. "Offshore wind energy plays a central role in the success of the energy transition. The industry must be able to rely on maintaining the expansion target of 70 GW by 2045. The fact that this was reaffirmed in the coalition agreement is an important signal," emphasize the industry organizations BWE, BWO, VDMA Power Systems, WAB eV, WindEnergy Network eV, and the non-profit OFFSHORE WIND ENERGY Foundation.
For a cost-optimized expansion of offshore wind energy with a focus on security of supply, the following measures must now be implemented promptly and decisively:
- A future revenue model must better ensure project implementation and investment security – for example, when considering contracts for difference (CfD) mechanisms. It is important that the market framework is designed to be as harmonised as possible across Europe and that potential power purchase agreements (PPAs) are not curtailed.
- Adjustment of the statutory implementation periodby which operators must demonstrate the technical operational readiness of their offshore wind turbines – from currently six to at least twelve months after completion of the grid connectionto reflect the planning realities in GW projects and reduce connection costs.
The industry associations and organizations welcome the fact that further key prerequisites for future offshore wind expansion are already anchored in the coalition agreement.
This explicitly aims to reduce shadowing effects and efficiently exploit shared maritime potential in cooperation with neighboring countries to increase full-load hours and minimize system costs. Dr. Christoph Ploß, the Federal Government's Coordinator for Maritime Economy and Tourism, also pledged that the federal government would assume greater responsibility for financing port infrastructure.
Make development more flexible
For the first time, the N-2025 offshore wind site, auctioned in June 9.4 with a grid connection capacity of one gigawatt, will have a mandatory overdevelopment rate of 10 to 20 percent. The goal is to achieve higher utilization of the offshore grid connection system. However, the organizations believe this requires a more flexible planning approach that is more closely balanced between wind farm developers and grid operators. The so-called "sweet spot" of the optimal overdevelopment rate varies depending on the location and should be the responsibility of the project developers.
Urgent reform of offshore wind energy law and tender design
The most recent auction for an offshore wind site in June 2025 was awarded for only €180 million—substantially less than in previous auction rounds. This is a clear sign that offshore wind developers are facing an unhealthy level of risk. These include rigid development regulations and supply chain bottlenecks.
Industry associations and organizations are sharply criticizing the fact that the June auction was conducted according to the same rules for the third consecutive year – even though this simple request for willingness to pay is rejected by a broad alliance of national and European stakeholders, including the EU Commission. The declining number of bidders to the minimum of two and the corresponding decline in bids, as well as the persistently high pressure on the supply chain, demonstrate the urgent need for reform. A fundamental overhaul of the auction design is inevitable this year.
In addition to the homework in Germany, two points in particular must be implemented at the European level: First, the tendering framework needs to be harmonized, for example through the unbureaucratic implementation of the Net Zero Industry Act in as many European offshore wind energy markets as possible. Second, a competitive and fair level playing field must be created, and industrial policy support for European manufacturers and suppliers is also essential.
Securing offshore infrastructure – thinking integrated
Offshore wind energy is also a fundamental part of critical infrastructure. It is important to ensure that security-relevant vulnerabilities are avoided along the entire supply chain, particularly in the area of cybersecurity. To achieve this, the EU NIS2 Directive must be implemented efficiently and swiftly. The same applies to the implementation of the European CER Directive on the physical protection of critical infrastructure.
The Federal Government must design the framework for integrated security in such a way that contributions from the private sector are legally secure and predictable – while clearly respecting the limits of civil responsibility.
Download:
Press release on the status of offshore wind energy in Germany in the first half of 1
Status of offshore wind energy development_First half of 2025
About the BWO
The Federal Association for Offshore Wind Energy (BWO) is the political lobby for the offshore wind industry in Germany. We pool the technical expertise of companies along the entire value chain, from manufacturers to developers and operators to offshore wind energy service providers. For politicians and authorities at federal and state level, the BWO is the central contact for all questions relating to offshore wind energy.