Wind farms

Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie (BSH, Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency) is the agency which decides on the approval of offshore wind farm development projects in the German North Sea and Baltic Sea. It carries out the application procedure for wind farms in the German Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

Most of the German offshore wind farms are planned to be installed in the EEZ. Within the 12 nautical mile limit, i.e. in the area of the territorial sea, responsibility for the approval of wind farms rests with the German coastal states. An approval granted by the BSH for installations in the EEZ is not legally binding for approval procedures involving installations on land and in the territorial sea.

The legal basis for the erection of wind farms in the German EEZ is the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 and the German „Seeaufgabengesetz“ (Federal Maritime Responsibilities Act), implemented by the „Seeanlagenverordnung“ (Marine Facilities Ordinance), which is the basis for the approval procedure. It requires that a wind farm project has to be approved provided that
a) it does not impair the safety and efficiency of navigation, and
a) it is not detrimental to the marine environment.

In the course of the approval procedure, the BSH reviews whether the marine environmental features to be protected (e.g. birds, fish, marine mammals, benthos, sea bottom and water) are put at risk by the project. Besides, offshore wind farm projects comprising more than 20 turbines require an environmental impact assessment based on the UVPG (Environmental Impact Assessment Act). UVPG requires that applicants investigate the marine environment in the project area and predict the impact of the projected wind farm. The BSH has issued regulations specifying the required scope of the investigations to be carried out by the applicants with respect to each of the features to be protected (so-called „Standards for the Environmental Impact Assessment“).

The BSH and the competent regional Waterways and Shipping Directorate also examine whether the project would constitute a hazard to navigation. In order for a wind farm project to obtain approval, the regional Waterways and Shipping Directorate must have consented to it under the aspect of navigational safety.

An important part of each approval is the incidental provisions which, in a largely standardised form,  are part of each notification of approval issued by the BSH for an offshore wind farm project. For example, wind farm approvals expire after 25 years, so that after the end of their regular service life an extension of approval can be re-considered. Also, to prevent that areas are reserved for future use, construction of the turbines has to be started within 2.5 years after notification of the approval.

A detailed description is available under approval procedure.

As the impact of offshore wind farms on navigational safety and the marine environment has not yet been finally assessed, the BSH so far has only approved pilot-scale projects comprising maximally 80 wind turbines. The purpose of these smaller-scale projects is a detailed investigation of the impact of offshore wind farms on the marine environment and navigation. As the determination of preferred areas for offshore wind farm development has become mandatory and the planning instruments for marine spatial planning in the Exclusive Economic Zone are now available, it will be possible in future to approve the construction of larger numbers of wind turbines in preferred areas for wind farm development, which implies that other, more sensitive areas can be kept free from such installations.

The BSH publishes relevant technical instructions in order to improve legal and investment security. In co-operation with a group of experts, technical instructions have been developed specifying detailed minimum requirements for the mandatory geological/geophysical and geotechnical site investigation at planned wind farm sites (Geotechnical Site Investigation Standard, 2008). Furthermore, a standard has been elaborated, which specifies the requirements for offshore wind turbine construction and ensures that all installations and structural components are certified (Standard - Design of Offshore Wind Turbines, 2007).

Approved Wind Farm Projects in the North Sea:

Approved Wind Farm Projects in the Baltic Sea:

Approvals for grid connections in the North Sea:

More information:

Genehmigungsverfahren von Offshore-Windenergieanlagen nach der Seeanlagenverordnung. Von Christian Dahlke.
In: Natur und Recht, Jg. 24, 2002, Heft 8, S. 472-479

Standard for Environmental Impact Assessments
Impacts of offshore wind turbines on the marine environment

Utgrunden wind farm in Sweden Photo courtes of Enron Wind Europe