BASF and Vattenfall have signed a contract according to which the German chemical company will take over 49.5 percent of Vattenfall’s future offshore wind farm Hollandse Kust Zuid (HKZ). Including the contribution to the construction of the wind farm, the business will cost BASF around 1.6 billion euros.
When the wind farm is expected to be fully operational in 2023, it will be the largest and first fully commercial offshore wind farm in the world that will not receive any subsidies for the electricity it produces. Vattenfall wants to supply customers in the Netherlands with the electricity generated there, while BASF intends to use it for chemical production at locations in Europe. Larger wind farms than the HKZ are already being planned or under construction, but will not be fully completed until later.
The pure purchase price is according to notification to 0.3 billion euros. The offshore installation work on the wind farm is scheduled to begin next month. 140 wind turbines are to be installed with a total output of 1.5 gigawatts.
Life without fossil fuels
According to the self-description, Vattenfall wants to enable a “life without fossil fuels” within a generation. To this end, the company invests in renewable energies, especially in offshore wind power. Vattenfall is looking for partners to offset the considerable investment costs for the future systems.
BASF, in turn, wants to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent by 2030 and achieve net zero emissions by 2050. To do this, the company wants to replace fossil-generated electricity with fossil-free electricity. In order to get the necessary amounts of renewable electricity, BASF is partnering up.
(anw)
