ELWIND is an Estonian-Latvian concept of a joint offshore hybrid wind energy park in the Baltic Sea. The total capacity of the planned offshore wind farm is 700 – 1000 MW, which will provide over 3 TWh of energy per year. The offshore wind farm will be operational by 2030. The project is progressing rapidly to turn off energy costs, and has reached an important milestone: public procurement for a pre-feasibility study, which aims to pre-select suitable geographical areas for the construction of the wind farm, has been successfully completed. The results of the evaluation should be available by the end of this year. Therefore, it is possible that the decision on the selection of specific sectors for further development could be taken in early 2022.
Jānis Vitenbergs, Minister of Economy of Latvia, said: “The development of renewable energy-based production capacities is of utmost importance for the entire Baltic region. Considering the current state of global energy markets and the upward trend observed in the price trajectory of fossil energy sources, wind-based electricity production is a vital tool to ensure a sufficient and stable supply of clean, cheap, and carbon-neutral energy.” Taavi Aas, Minister of Economy and Infrastructure of Estonia, added: “We have joined forces with our neighbors with the aim of achieving sustainable, economic, and stable energy production. We are at the beginning of a long and challenging journey in which two good neighbors are efficiently combining their expertise, resources, and commitment in order to improve cross-border connectivity and improve the security of supply for the Baltic countries. Moreover, it is undoubtedly another important step in achieving the objectives of European green policy.“
The aim is to evaluate several locations of around 200 km2 each, assuming a power density of 5-7 MW/km2 for the development of offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea within the Estonian and Latvian exclusive economic zones, based on the assessment of a set of ecological, sustainability, economic and technical criteria.
In 2020, Ministers Jānis Vitenbergs and Taavi Aas signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which provided for the completion of the project by 2030. The offshore wind farm is designed with a total capacity of 700-1000 MW, which is expected to provide over 3 TWh of energy based on renewable sources per year. Estonia and Latvia are planning to apply for co-financing for the construction of the network from CEF RES (The Connecting Europe Facility of Renewable Energy) funds since the ELWIND project involves two countries and could be qualified as a regional status project. The project is led by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications of Estonia, the Ministry of Economy of Latvia, the Environmental Investment Centre of Estonia (KIK), and the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia (LIAA).