Denmark approved plans to construct an artificial island in the North Sea and use it as clean energy hub. When built, the island will supply both clean powers to homes and green hydrogen for use in shipping, aviation, industry and heavy transport. The decision came as the EU unveiled plans to transform the bloc’s electricity supply. The bloc aims to rely mostly on renewable energy within a decade while increasing offshore wind energy capacity roughly 25-fold by mid-century. The planned island, which will be located 80 kilometers off Denmark’s west coast, will initially be 120,000 square meters in size, bigger than 18 standard football fields.
The surrounding wind turbines will have a capacity of at least 3 gigawatts, ramping up to 10 gigawatts over time. The energy island is an important part of country’s legally binding target to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 70% of the 1990 levels by 2030. The Nordic country, with its favorable wind speeds, was a pioneer in both onshore and offshore wind, building the world’s first offshore wind farm almost 30 years ago. The nation is also home to the world’s largest wind turbine producer, Vesta Wind Systems and the world’s top developer of offshore wind, Orsted AS. The state also has plans for a second energy island in the Baltic Sea.