• The Regional Director of Environmental Protection in Gdańsk has issued an environmental decision for the transmission infrastructure of the BC-Wind off-shore wind farm.
• The decision encompasses the transmission of power from the BC-Wind off-shore wind farm and its connection to the National Power System.
Warsaw, September 3rd, 2024. Ocean Winds, the international company dedicated to off-shore wind energy and created as a 50-50 joint venture by EDP Renewables and ENGIE, has secured the environmental decision for the transmission infrastructure for its BC-Wind offshore wind farm. This decision, issued by the Regional Director of Environmental Protection in Gdańsk, covers both the offshore and onshore components of the transmission infrastructure.
The environmental decision for the BC-Wind offshore wind farm’s connection infrastructure was issued based on a detailed environmental impact report. This report was prepared by MEWO, in collaboration with Geomor sp. z o.o. and Marea Sp. z o.o. Marea was responsible for the terres-trial inventory, while MEWO conducted the inventory for the marine cable route, involving ex-perts in ornithology, chiropterology, and marine mammals. Additionally, an archaeological in-ventory of the seabed was performed using ROV vehicles, side-scan sonar, and magnetic anomaly measurements.
“Obtaining the environmental decision for the transmission infrastructure is a crucial milestone in the BC-Wind project. We are approaching the final investment decision and the permitting phase for the offshore wind farm’s construction. This project will make a significant contribution to Poland’s energy transition. Furthermore, it will be the first offshore wind farm in our Baltic Sea portfolio,” stated Kacper Kostrzewa, Project Director.
The decision includes the construction of approximately 33 km of submarine cable and around 8 km onshore. The transmission infrastructure will be implemented using horizontal directional drilling (HDD), which involves laying cables underground without disturbing the shoreline, in-cluding the beach area. This method will ensure the safe connection of the marine and onshore cable sections in specially designed land-based pits. The BC-Wind transmission infrastructure will connect to the National Power System at the 400 kV Choczewo Substation operated by Pol-skie Sieci Elektroenergetyczne (PSE S.A.).
The planned start of initial onshore construction work is scheduled for the second half of 2025.
BC-Wind is an offshore wind farm project located approximately 23 kilometers north of the shore, near the municipalities of Krokowa and Choczewo in the Pomeranian Voivodeship. The project aims to achieve a planned capacity of up to 500 MW, with a total farm area of 90.94 km².
The BC-Wind farm is in an advanced stage of development and is one of the key projects in the Polish part of the Baltic Sea. The project already holds environmental decisions for both the onshore and offshore components, as well as connection conditions. The current priorities in-clude contracting key suppliers for the offshore wind farm components, planning the service base, and preparing to take the Final Investment Decision (FID), expected by the end of 2024.
