Ignitis Group and Ocean Winds are expected to be announced as the provisional winners of the 700 MW Lithuanian offshore wind project tender.
The tender was won by Ocean Winds, a joint venture between Engie and EDP Renewables, and Ignitis Renewables, a subsidiary of Ignitis Group, as they submitted the highest development fee of EUR 20m ($22m).
The real-time bidding process of the first Lithuanian offshore project’s tender began on July 7 and was completed on July 10. The provisional winner is due to be confirmed by the Lithuanian National Energy Regulatory Council no later than the next day after the bidding process has closed.
The winner of the tender will be announced after the screening of compliance with national security interests. It is supposed to be completed at the beginning of the third quarter of 2023.
The next steps would include Ignitis Renewables and Ocean Winds setting up a joint company, which would be awarded the development and operation permit, granting the right to use the maritime area for 41 years.
The maritime area for the 700 MW capacity offshore wind farm development is located some 30–36 km from Lithuania’s Baltic Sea coast, covering an area of approximately 120 square kilometres. The project is expected to become operational by 2030. It should generate up to 3 TWh of electricity, which would meet up to 25% of Lithuania’s current electricity demand.
The tender win is a substantial step towards the Group’s objective to increase its green generation capacity four times from the current 1.2 GW to 4–5 GW by 2030.
