Updated: PPAs signed to trade and balance power generation from world's largest offshore windfarm

Ørsted will trade and balance 960 MW of renewable power production from the 2.4 GW of installed capacity at Dogger Bank A and B on the power market on a day-ahead basis. It will also handle intra-day fluctuations in volume and prices, balancing the power into the grid. Ørsted’s market exposure is limited to fluctuations in power prices on a day-to-day basis.

The contract between Ørsted and Dogger Bank Wind Farm is the largest route-to-market agreement to date for a renewable project signed in a competitive tender process in the UK market.

Ørsted Markets & Bioenergy chief executive and executive vice president Morten Buchgreitz said handling a 15-year trading agreement for the windfarm – which will be the world’s largest when complete – is in line with the company’s vision of a world that runs entirely on green energy.

SSE Renewables Dogger Bank project director Steve Wilson said the deal was one of the final milestones on the route to reaching financial close for the project.

Equinor vice president for Dogger Bank Halfdan Brustad said the massive project was moving forward despite current global challenges, and the PPA is a “tangible milestone that brings us one step closer to financial close.”

Dogger Bank, which is owned equally by SSE Renewables and Equinor will be built 130 km off the coast of Yorkshire in the UK. It consists of three phases (Dogger Bank A, B, and C), each of 1.2 GW. Ørsted will offtake power from the first two phases, Dogger Bank A and Dogger Bank B.

The agreement is subject to financial close on Dogger Bank A and Dogger Bank B, which is expected soon.

* Shortly after Ørsted’s announcement, Shell Energy Europe Limited said it had secured a 15-year PPA for 20% of the power to be produced by the first two phases of Dogger Bank. Shell’s offtake agreement covers 480 MW of the windfarm’s capacity.

Shell Energy Europe general manager Rupen Tanna said, “As the UK Government underscored earlier this month, offshore wind will play a key role in the UK’s transition to a low-carbon future.

“Power is a growth priority for Shell. This long-term agreement will enable us to supply more clean power to our customers, while supporting the development of one of the most ambitious renewable power projects in the world.

"Shell has many years of experience trading and supplying power to energy retailers and we are working to increase the amount of electricity we supply directly to commercial, industrial and residential customers."