Two bids submitted by the deadline

The deadline for submitting bids for two offshore areas for the establishment of at least 1.8 GW of offshore wind at the North Sea Mid and Hesselø sites expired on Wednesday, 20 May 2026. Bids have been submitted for both areas.

The offshore wind farms have been tendered under a support scheme. Under the scheme, the state guarantees offshore wind producers a fixed price for their electricity, with net payout caps of DKK 15.7 billion for North Sea Mid and DKK 21.9 billion for Hesselø, respectively.

The Danish Energy Agency states that it has begun evaluating the bids received. The final result of the tender will be published once the evaluation has been completed. The evaluation process is expected to be completed by January 2027 at the latest.

In autumn 2028, the bid deadline will apply to a third offshore area, North Sea South, which is to deliver a minimum of 1 GW of offshore wind.

Background

On 20 November 2025, the Danish Energy Agency published the tender material for a total of 2.8 GW of offshore wind across the three offshore areas North Sea I Mid, North Sea I South and Hesselø.

The tenders follow up on an offshore wind tender from 2024, in which six areas were put out to tender. By the bid deadline for the first three areas, the Danish Energy Agency had not received any bids. The Danish Energy Agency therefore subsequently held several market dialogues. These dialogues formed the basis for two political agreements in 2025. The new 2.8 GW offshore wind tenders are based on these agreements.

The new parks

Together, the parks are to be able to deliver green electricity equivalent to the consumption of around three million Danish and European homes.

The three offshore wind farms are being tendered under a support scheme – a so-called two-sided capability-based contract for difference (CfD). Under the scheme, the state guarantees offshore wind producers a fixed price for their electricity. A total support cap of DKK 55.2 billion incl. VAT has been set.

The tenders include requirements relating to sustainability and social responsibility. This includes, among other things, requirements for recyclable turbine blades and measures against social dumping. The winning bidder for Hesselø must establish the offshore wind farm using so-called nature-inclusive design. In addition, to safeguard against security threats, requirements are also imposed regarding emergency preparedness. Bidders must at all times be able to document that they comply with applicable emergency preparedness legislation.

SAAF advises within offshore wind

The law firm SAAF has advised on offshore wind for many years. We have continuously followed developments in the tendering of larger offshore wind farms closely. Among other things, SAAF has advised Energinet in connection with the Anholt A transformer station and assisted with a number of the more recent offshore expansions in the North Sea. In addition, SAAF has delivered professional presentations on the regulatory framework in Denmark, including for the Danish Energy Agency’s international office.