Press Release:

BSH responds to industry demand: Offshore wind areas should be optimized

Berlin, June 22, 2026. The German Offshore Wind Energy Association (BWO) welcomes the amendment procedures for the Area Development Plan (FEP) initiated by the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) on June 19. The planned adjustments aim to align area planning more closely with the actual electricity yield and economic viability of offshore wind projects, for example, through lower power densities and optimized area layouts. The changes also affect the areas from the unsuccessful 2025 auction. The BWO emphasizes that improved area planning must be accompanied by a reform of the Offshore Wind Energy Act.

With the amendment process for the area development plan (FEP), the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) is addressing key demands of the offshore wind industry. In the future, area planning will be more strongly geared towards increasing the actual electricity yield of offshore wind farms. This includes, among other things, lower power densities, as demanded by the Federal Wind Energy Association (BWO) – significantly below 10 MW per square kilometer – and optimized area layouts that reduce mutual shading of wind turbines.

“The fact that the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) intends to align spatial planning more closely with actual electricity yield is an important signal. Extracting more energy from a given area while simultaneously improving the economic viability of projects creates better conditions for investment in offshore wind energy. But improved spatial planning alone is not enough,” says Stefan Thimm, Managing Director of the German Offshore Wind Energy Association (BWO). “Now policymakers must continue to develop the Offshore Wind Energy Act in an equally constructive manner. This includes an indexed, two-sided CfD-only model and a legally regulated mechanism that allows projects from the 2023 to 2025 tender years that are no longer economically viable to be voluntarily withdrawn and quickly re-tendered. Only in this way can the project pipeline remain reliable and the supply chain maintain the planning certainty it needs for investment.”

Adjustments to the areas without bids or tenders

For the areas N-10.1 and N-10.2, which received no bids in 2025, the BSH (Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency) proposes three options for a new area layout. The aim is to reduce the power density and thus improve the economic viability of the projects. This should make the areas more attractive for the renewed tender in 2027. "The ideas for upgrading the areas that failed in 2025 show that the Federal Government is drawing the right conclusions from this failure. It is essential to carefully examine the impact of the various options on the area previously designated for offshore hydrogen," said Thimm.

From the BWO's perspective, the decisive factor is that the chosen solution enables the highest possible electricity yield, creates economically viable projects, and offers the greatest long-term benefit to the energy system. According to the amendment proposal, a total of four offshore wind farms with a capacity of four gigawatts are planned for the 2027 tender: N-10.1 and N-10.2 with a combined capacity of 2,5 gigawatts, as well as N-13.1 with 0,5 gigawatts and N-13.2 with one gigawatt.

For areas N-12.4 and N-12.5, whose tender for 2026 was suspended, the draft amendment does not initially provide for a new tender in 2027. The BSH intends to determine the timing of the tender at a later date.

The German Offshore Wind Energy Association (BWO) emphasizes that the adjustments to the area development plan must support the legally mandated expansion path for offshore wind energy to 70 gigawatts by 2045. According to the Offshore Wind Energy Act, at least four gigawatts of offshore wind capacity are to be tendered annually starting in 2027. "A reliable tender volume is crucial so that the supply chain can rely on a predictable project pipeline in the long term. Only a continuous expansion of offshore wind energy creates the foundation for sustainable value creation and secure employment," emphasizes the BWO Managing Director. "Therefore, the capacities not tendered in 2026 should be made up for immediately."