Market and regulatory aspects of trans-national offshore electricity networks for wind power interconnection

Abstract

Subsea cable connections are an essential part of offshore wind power projects. Apart from direct connections between an offshore wind park to the national grid, several alternatives can be envisaged, including the connection to interconnectors between countries or direct connection to a country outside the jurisdiction where the wind park is based. Besides the technical-economical constraints of these new types of grid connection, market and regulatory aspects need to be assessed. The paper gives an overview of these trans-national connection schemes for wind power and considers integration into electricity markets and discusses regulatory implications. The scope of the research is Western Europe. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.