Vattenfall has confirmed its final investment decision (FID) for the Nordlicht offshore wind cluster in Germany following the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency's (BSH) issuance of an irrevocable permit for the Nordlicht II offshore wind farm.
The Nordlicht offshore wind cluster includes both Nordlicht I and Nordlicht II. The wind farms are jointly owned by Vattenfall (51%) and BASF (49%).
Construction of the offshore wind cluster is expected to begin this year, with monopile installation on Nordlicht I set to be initiated in the third quarter of 2025.
Installation of monopiles for Nordlicht II is due to start nearly one year later. Both sites aim to be operational in 2028.
Nordlicht I, with a capacity of 980MW, is set to become Germany’s largest offshore wind farm, while Nordlicht II will have a power generation capacity of 630MW.
The entire Nordlicht cluster will provide a combined net capacity exceeding 1.6GW.
The two wind farms, located 85km north of Borkum Island in the German North Sea, will feature a total of 112 Vestas V236-15.0MW turbines – 68 on Nordlicht I and 44 on Nordlicht II.
Vattenfall initially made a full FID for Nordlicht I in March 2025. The company at that time took a conditional FID for Nordlicht II, subject to receiving the required permit for Nordlicht II.
The latest BSH permit removes this condition and confirms full approval for both wind farms.
Planning approval for Nordlicht II was granted by the BSH in October 2025, providing legal grounds for construction activities.
Both wind farms are designed with turbine towers partially constructed using low-emission steel, which is expected to reduce their carbon footprint by 16% compared to conventional materials.
Vattenfall senior vice-president and business area wind head Catrin Jung said: “Securing the irrevocable permit and reaching our full investment decision marks a defining moment for Nordlicht.
“By producing clean electricity locally, we help create a more resilient energy system. Together with our partners, we are committed to delivering a project that will power homes and industries with fossil-free energy for decades to come.”
