Plans for a 100-turbine offshore wind farm off the southwestern coast of the island of Saaremaa look set to move forward after initial doubts, with cooperation in the €1.7 billion project coming from a Dutch company, Van Oord.
National security issues had jeopardized the project last year and led to a government decision that construction permits would not be forthcoming, but the company behind it, Saare Wind Energy, has signed a deal with Dutch marine construction company Van Oord, meaning it is likely to continue.
Saare Wind Energy had also appealed the permit decision, ERR's online news in Estonian reports.
The original Saare Wind Energy plan envisaged a wind farm of 100 six-megawatt turbines, 10 to 27 kilometers offshore, as well as an offshore substation, an onshore connection to the electricity grid, and connecting cables between the two units.
The original Saare Wind Energy plan envisaged a wind farm of 100 six-megawatt turbines, 10 to 27 kilometers offshore, as well as an offshore substation, an onshore connection to the electricity grid, and connecting cables between the two units.
The turbines would be placed 800 to 1,100 meters apart, with their final precise location to be specified during the environmental impact assessment.
The company had planned to use Siemens electric wind turbines, which can generate electricity at wind speeds of 3 to 25 meters per second. Wind speeds off Estonia's west coast commonly fall into this range.
The turbine towers were set at just over 100 meters in height, at a maximum of 180 meters including turbine blades.
The base area of each turbine was estimated at up to 500 square meters, with foundations up to a depth of 20-35 meters.
The wind farm's annual electricity output was projected at 2,800 gigawatt hours, which would represent 28.8 percent of Estonia's total electricity production as of, 2018 or 170 percent of the country's renewable energy output for the same year.
Suggested locations on the mainland for the submarine connecting cables were Häädemeeste, Pärnu County, and Virtsu, Lääne County.
The final location of the wind turbines and the offshore cable route corridor will be determined on the basis of the results of studies, including an environmental impact assessment, of the proposed offshore wind farm and of the offshore cable line, landings and ground facilities.
Saare Wind Energy is owned by businessmen Veiko Väli with a 66.7 percent stake, and Kuido Kartau with the remaining 33.3 percent.
Van Oord is a Dutch-based international marine construction company, which reported a €92 million profit for 2018 and a turnover of €1.88 billion.
Other projects it has been involved with include the Palm Islands archipelago off the coast of Dubai,
The cooperation agreement between Van Oord and Saare Wind Energy was aided by the Estonian Investment Agency, a part of Enterprise Estonia.
Source: ERR
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