MFW Bałtyk II and MFW Bałtyk III are offshore wind farms planned to be developed in the Baltic Sea. The two projects are 50:50 joint ventures (JVs) of Equinor and Polish private energy group Polenergia.
The two wind farms will have a combined capacity of 1,440MW (720MW x 2), ensuring clean energy supplies for two million households.
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Equinor will be the operator during the development, construction, and operation phases of Bałtyk II and Bałtyk III, while Polenergia will be responsible for obtaining permits and management of local affairs.
The final investment decision (FID) for the two projects is planned for 2024 after obtaining all the necessary permits.
The construction phase will commence in 2024 and the projects are expected to deliver first power to the electricity grid in 2027.
MFW Bałtyk II and MFW Bałtyk III are expected to remain operational for 25-30 years.
The 1,560MW MFW Bałtyk I, also being developed by Equinor and Polenergia, is following a different timeline.
Location and Site details
The MFW Bałtyk II and MFW Bałtyk III will be located approximately 27km and 40km from the port of Łeba, respectively, in the Baltic Sea.
Overall, the two wind farms include a combined area of about 240km2.
The distance of the wind farms from the shore will be 37km and 22km respectively. Water depth in the regions range from around 25m to 40m.
Project details
The two projects will have 720MW of installed capacity each.
The wind farms will be equipped with SG 14-236DD wind turbines. Each of these turbines have a nominal power of 14MW, which can reach up to 15MW with power boost.
At full load, one rotation of the rotor will generate enough electricity for one average Polish household for four days. The turbine will be able to produce the electricity needed to power one average Polish household for one year in ten minutes at full load.
The projects will include two offshore substations and one onshore substation at Słupsk Wierzbięcino.
The length of the Bałtyk II and Bałtyk III offshore cables will be 60km and 65km respectively, while the onshore cables for both the projects will be 10km long.
The distance from the onshore substation the connection to the transmission system operator (TSO) grid will be 10km.
Equinor has also acquired a site at the port of Łeba to develop an operations and maintenance (O&M) base for the offshore wind projects. The O&M base will have office, storage, and transportation facilities, and will serve as the logistics hub for the Bałtyk projects.
Contractors Involved
In February 2022, Equinor and Polenergia selected Siemens Gamesa as the preferred supplier of wind turbine generators for the MFW Bałtyk II and MFW Bałtyk III projects.
As agreed, Siemens Gamesa will deliver SG 14-236 DD offshore wind turbines for the projects. The exact number of units to be delivered will be determined later following the completion of the final turbine supply agreement and service and warranty agreements.
In December 2022, Hitachi Energy secured the contract to deliver electrical systems infrastructure for Bałtyk II and Bałtyk III projects.
The scope of the contract work includes system study analysis, integration of equipment of interfacing contractors, overall power control system and overall telecom network. It will also include delivery of high voltage equipment at the offshore substation and the onshore substation, and turnkey delivery of the onshore substation with interfacing work at the grid connection in Slupsk.
Permitting Process timelines
In March 2012, MFW Bałtyk III received location permit that would enable construction and use artificial islands, structures ad installations in the Polish sea areas. MFW Baltyk II received the same permission in January 2013.
MFW Baltyk II received the permit for laying cables on the seabed in March 2014 and a decision on environmental conditions in March 2017.
In January 2019, Baltyk II obtained connection conditions from the transmission system operator. Bałtyk III received the conditions in August 2012.
MFW Bałtyk III secured a permit/agreement establishing the location and conditions for maintaining offshore cables in marine areas in July 2013 and March 2014 and a decision on environmental conditions in July 2016.
MFW Bałtyk III has also obtained the decision on environmental conditions for the offshore transmission infrastructure in March 2019.
The Voivodship Governor issued the building permit for both the projects on the basis of technical design and permits obtained at the early stages by investors. Separate location permits are required for the onshore infrastructure.
In May 2021, Poland’s Energy Regulatory Office (ERO) awarded Contracts for Difference (CfDs) to MFW Bałtyk II and III.
