The Government of Estonia has approved a draft bill granting the country’s first construction permit for an offshore wind farm to Saare Wind Energy, which plans to build a wind farm on the west coast of Saaremaa.
The building permit is being applied for an offshore wind farm consisting of up to 100 turbines, located at least 11 km from the west coast of Saaremaa. The maximum capacity of the farm is planned to be up to 1,400 MW and it could start producing electricity in the early 2030s.
The building permit is valid for 50 years and gives the developer the right to build an offshore wind farm with the necessary infrastructure and allows the next step to apply for a building permit from the Consumer Protection and Technical Surveillance Authority and an environmental permit for special water use from the Environmental Board.
Saare Wind Energy OÜ must apply for a building permit, which is generally valid for five years, and finally for an occupancy permit within two years of the issuance of the building permit. The building permit also includes specific environmental mitigation measures that the developer must comply with.
"This is the first building permit in the history of Estonian offshore wind farms – it is an important step towards clean energy production," said Jaanus Uiga, Undersecretary of State for Energy and Mineral Resources at the Ministry of Climate.
Issuing a building permit does not mean that the project will receive state support - the permit is necessary regardless of possible support measures, the government noted.
In addition to the plan of Saare Wind Energy, the state has initiated construction permit procedures for 11 more offshore wind farms, which have been submitted by Utilitas Wind, Five Wind Energy, Tuuletraal, UAB "Ignitis renewables projektai 6", Liivi ƶijϻ, the Environmental Investment Center Foundation (ELWIND), and Tuul Energy.
