European Offshore Wind 2009

The development of wind power is crucial to meeting the European Union’s aspirations and targets for developing renewable energy and reducing carbon emissions. To facilitate this development, Europe’s electricity Transmission System Operators (TSOs) have been active in addressing issues associated with efficiently accommodating wind onto the transmission networks:

• establishing direct connections to large wind farms both onshore and offshore;
• planning the connections and interfaces with increasingly active distribution networks connecting wind generation;
• reinforcing network pinch-points within and between national networks;
• participating in market developments, such as establishing intraday markets, market coupling, and forming regional markets;
• developing balancing arrangements through enhanced control arrangements and commercial mechanisms; and
• developing appropriate grid codes to facilitate large scale wind entry.

The aim of this session was to inform participants of the current status of the EWIS project.