Chloregy

Nine European nations have agreed to develop a wind energy “supergrid” in the North Sea, a project leaders say will link at least nine nations currently developing offshore wind power to the continent’s electricity system. While the nations have yet to allocate any funds, they pledged to meet in early 2010 to establish a timetable and plan. Hans Erik Kristofferson, head of the Danish national grid, Energinet, said the North Seas Countries’ Offshore Grid Initiative would allow existing and future wind farms to send electricity across national boundaries whenever it is needed. “We’re in the first phase now of something that could be quite huge,” Kristofferson said. The cooperating nations include Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the UK. Offshore wind currently accounts for about .3 percent of Europe’s total electricity use, according to the European Wind Energy Association. But improvements to the regional grid system could boost its share to about 10 percent by 2030, the group said. Overall, Europe aims to get 20 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020.

Source: http://e360.yale.edu/content/digest.msp?id=2183