European nations reinforce wind power commitment with 100 GW pledge

By Andreas Rinke, Holger Hansen and William James

HAMBURG/BERLIN/LONDON, Jan 26 (Reuters) - Britain, Germany, Denmark and other European countries signed a clean energy pact at a North Sea Summit in Hamburg on Monday, pledging to deliver 100 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind power capacity through large-scale joint projects.

The agreement, which contrasts sharply with U.S. President Donald Trump's opposition to green energy, signals that Western and Northern European governments remain committed to wind power as a way to boost energy security.

At the World Economic Forum in Davos last week, Trump amplified his criticism of Europe's shift to low-carbon energy, saying countries that rely on wind turbines lose money.

GREEN ENERGY CUTS EUROPE'S RELIANCE ON IMPORTS

"Green energy is not only good for our planet, it strengthens our energy security," Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said after signing a bilateral offshore wind agreement with Germany.

"By investing in offshore wind, we reduce our reliance on imports and we take control of our energy future."

Ending dependence on Russian energy, in particular, has been among Europe's top goals.

European Union member states on Monday gave final approval to imposing a ban on Russian gas imports by late 2027, making the break from their former top supplier legally binding, nearly four years after Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

A new imbalance, however, is clouding the push for energy sovereignty. In 2025, the EU sourced 27% of total gas and LNG imports from the U.S., with which Europe's ties are increasingly strained. New LNG contracts mean this could rise to 40% by 2030, according to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.

The commitment to boost cross-border collaboration is part of a goal agreed by North Sea countries in 2023 to have 300 GW of offshore wind capacity by 2050.

Industry lobby WindEurope said that its member companies had pledged to cut costs, to create 91,000 jobs, and to generate 1 trillion euros ($1.2 trillion) of economic activity.

Adding 100 GW at sea would transform Europe's power market because the region currently has 258 GW installed wind capacity, both on- and offshore, providing 19% of the electricity consumed in Europe, according to WindEurope data.

This could benefit makers of grid technology such as Siemens Energy EN1n.DE and GE Vernova GEV.N, project developers including RWE RWEG.DE and Orsted ORSTED.CO as well as wind turbine manufacturers such as Vestas VWS.CO.

EUROPEAN PARTNERSHIPS MAKE OFFSHORE WIND INTERNATIONAL

National Grid NG.L of the UK and TenneT Germany said they will partner to develop a power link connecting British and German offshore wind farms in the North Sea to supply both countries.

Germany and Denmark agreed to share the costs of financing a windfarm off the Danish island of Bornholm, expected to power some 3 million homes.

Monday's deal, a draft of which was reported by Reuters last week, was signed in Hamburg by Britain, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Norway.

"By planning expansion, grids and industry together and implementing them across borders, we are creating clean and affordable energy, strengthening our industrial base and increasing Europe's strategic sovereignty," said German Economy Minister Katherina Reiche.

Separately, Reiche unveiled plans to revive Germany's languishing offshore wind tenders with a package of measures including granting investors more reliable power revenues.

By introducing "Contracts for Difference", investors stand to receive compensation when market prices for electricity fall under an agreed reference price. When prices exceed that benchmark, they will pay back some of their revenues.

Germany needs to step up its efforts after two recent offshore wind tenders did not attract any bids, whereas Britain and Ireland ran successful projects, Reiche said.

Britain said it would also sign other agreements with smaller groups of attending nations to promote more efficient development of cross-border projects, and infrastructure to create offshore wind farms directly connected to more than one country.

Britain this month secured a record 8.4 GW of prospective offshore wind capacity in its latest power auction.
($1 = 0.8409 euros)