EnBW Energie, the third largest energy company in Germany, has commenced the operation of the country’s first commecercial offshore wind farm – EnBW Baltic 1 off the Baltic Sea coast.
Located 16 kilometres from the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern coastline, EnBW Baltic 1 incorporates 21 wind power turbines, each with an installed power of 2.3 megawatts. Together they can generate 48.3 megawatts and can produce up to 185 gigawatts of electricity, or enough for 50,000 households.
The electricity produced in the EnBW Baltic 1 wind farm is transformed to the transfer voltage of 150 kilovolts and then transported to the coast through a 60 kilometre long marine cable. From the edge of the Baltic Sea, the electricity flows through a ground cable to the Bentwisch substation where it is transferred to the German mains network.
EnBW Energie plans to invest Eur8 billion to increase its current renewable energy capacity by 3,000 megawatts by 2010. With six million customers and more than 20,000 employees, EnBW Energie generated annual revenue in excess of Eur17 billion in 2010.