Status of Offshore Wind Energy Development in Germany
Second half of 2024

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Status: 31. December 2024
1.639 Offshore wind turbines (OWT) | 9,2 GW Capacity of offshore wind turbines
Offshore Wind Energy Development
As of December 31, 2024, 1,639 offshore wind turbines (OWT) with a total capacity of around 9.2 GW are in operation in German waters. Over the course of the year 2024, 73 of these turbines with a total capacity of 742 MW fed into the electricity grid for the first time and 78 existing
turbines underwent capacity modifications. At the end of 2024, 81 turbines had also been installed but had not yet fed into the grid for the first time. In addition, 66 foundations have been installed in the seabed, but the associated wind turbines had not yet been erected by the end of 2024.
In the coming years, a similar level of additions as in 2024 is predicted. Significantly higher annual expansion rates are expected towards the end of the decade, which will lead to a considerable increase in total installed offshore wind energy capacity in Germany.
Expansion Targets Offshore Wind Energy
The expansion targets for offshore wind energy are defined in the German Offshore Wind Energy Act (German: Windenergie-auf-See-Gesetz or WindSeeG). It specifies that the installed capacity of offshore wind turbines connected to the grid is to be increased to at least 30 GW by 2030, to at least 40 GW by 2035 and to at least 70 GW by 2045. According to Offshore Realisation Agreement from November 2022 the legally specified minimum target of 40 GW by 2035 is set to be exceeded, with 50 GW to be installed by 2035.
In order to achieve the expansion targets for offshore wind energy, the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (German: Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie or BSH) is constantly designating new sites for future expansion in the Site Development Plan (German: Flächenentwicklungsplan or FEP). The FEP 2025, which was published by the BSH in January 2025, provides for specifications for wind energy sites and grid connection systems up to the year 2034. Further specifications, e.g. those already included
in the draft FEP (June 2024), are to be included in a future update and are presented in the informative annex of the FEP 2025.
The legally defined expansion target of 30 GW for 2030 is expected to be achieved with a delay of around one year. The WindSeeG target for 2035 of 40 GW can already be achieved in 2034 according to the plans of the FEP 2025, provided that all sites planned for this are tendered, awarded and realised as planned. In order to achieve the increased expansion target of 50 GW for 2035, further specifications are required. This also applies to achieving the long-term legally defined expansion target of at least 70 GW offshore wind energy capacity by 2045.
Activities in Offshore Wind Energy Projects
At the end of 2024, 31 offshore wind energy projects (OWP) are fully operational in Germany. In the two projects Gode Wind 3 and Baltic Eagle, all turbines were commissioned in the course of 2024. In the project Borkum Riffgrund 3, the foundation installations were started at the end of 2023 and completed in the second half of 2024. The construction of the offshore wind turbines has progressed steadily since summer 2024 and was largely completed by the end of 2024. In the EnBW He Dreiht OWP, all foundations were installed over the course of 2024, but the wind turbines have not yet been erected. The final investment decisions (FID) for the North Sea cluster (NC 1-4) and Windanker projects were made in the spring of 2024. A further 13 projects had an award/claim for grid connection at the end of December 2024.