SSE Renewables partners with Brookfield for Dutch offshore wind bid

SSE Renewables has formed a strategic partnership with global asset manager Brookfield for participation in the 1.4GW Hollandse Kust West offshore wind farm zone tenders that are currently underway in the Netherlands. 

The 50/50 partnership combines SSE Renewables’ experience in developing, constructing and operating offshore wind farms with Brookfield’s specialism in contracting long-term offtake agreements with corporate counterparties through its Brookfield Renewable platform, the partners explained. 

The Hollandse Kust West zone is located approximately 53km off the west coast of the Netherlands and is divided between two 700MW sites: Site VI and Site VII.

Bidders for Site VI are required to propose ecologically beneficial measures in their plans, while those competing for Site VII are required to suggest innovations that could benefit the Dutch energy system. Bidding for the auction closes on 14 May, with the tender winners due to be announced after the summer.

Participants can also secure points by offering to pay the Dutch government up to €50 million for the permit.

SSE and Brookfield stated that they view the Netherlands as a leading market for offshore wind development. They pledged to “bring their innovative approaches to the Netherlands and see these tenders as a way to assist the Dutch government in achieving their ambitious renewables ambitions”.

They will face competition in the tenders, with renewables developer Vattenfall and chemical giant BASF also announcing their intention to bid.

SSE Renewables is a leading wind energy operator in the UK, and owns installed capacity of 2GW onshore and 500MW offshore (net). It is developing what will be the world’s largest offshore wind farm at Dogger Bank in the English North Sea. 

Brookfield Renewable has more than 700 industrial and commercial clients. In 2021 alone, it signed power purchase agreements (PPAs) with 62 individual companies for an annual contract volume of over 11TWh.

Brookfield is pursuing this partnership through the Brookfield Global Transition Fund I, the world’s largest fund focused on the energy transition. Brookfield has €3 billion of assets under management  in the Netherlands across renewable power, data infrastructure, real estate and industrial services.