Denmark will stop all offshore wind tenders, as the current framework that does not offer subsidies is ineffective under the current market conditions. This was announced by its Energy Minister on Friday.

Cost increases, interest rate hikes and bottlenecks in the supply chain have all affected the global offshore wind industry. Denmark announced in December that it had not received any bids for its latest wind at sea tender.

Energy Minister Lars Aagaard said at a press briefing that the government would now begin preparing to launch a tender for a new offshore-wind project this year, with a maximum capacity of 2 to 3 gigawatts. State subsidies could be offered.

Our assessment is that offshore wind might be required. "It's not that we're happy, but necessary," Aagaard said.

Denmark is a pioneer of both onshore wind and offshore wind. It's home to the largest offshore wind developer in the world, Orsted, as well as turbine manufacturer Vestas. Orsted announced on Friday that it was replacing its CEO in order to stop a 83% drop in the share price of its shares since 2021.

The government said that it also planned to finance a pipeline of hydrogen running from Denmark up to the German border.

The European green transition is dependent on the production of so-called "green hydrogen" from excess wind power when users are not using it. However, this development has stagnated.

The energy ministry released a statement saying that "at this stage, the government is committed" to making exports to Germany possible by 2030. (Reporting and editing by Jason Neely, Frances Kerry and Isabelle Yr Carlsson)

(source: Reuters)