Denmark, a pioneer nation in offshore wind farming, expands the repertoire of renewables with the world’s first “energy islands.” Plans long time discussed have now been accelerated due to the global energy market caused by Russia’s Ukraine invasion. Even if in 2021 wind power accounted for almost 50% of total electricity generation in the country, in order to be free of Russian fossil fuels as fast as possible the country will massively increase the deployment of renewable energy on land and at sea: the “energy islands” will act as hubs that collect electricity from the wind turbines, so that it will be possible to locate offshore wind farms farther away from the coast, and then distribute the generated power to the grid in Denmark as well as directly to several countries, more efficiently. Of the two islands, one will be located in the North Sea, the second will be located in the Baltic Sea, specifically on the island of Bornholm. In order to minimise impact and ensure that the areas are suited for construction Energinet, the Danish system operator of the transmission network, has already commissioned preliminary studies on the seabed around Bornholm and in the North Sea. Denmark did set up the first offshore wind farm in 1991, and now the country hopes to leave behind its reliance on fossil fuels thanks to the construction of these two big energy islands. Read more: Zmescience.com
