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Just as it did for onshore wind, the German government is counting on the initiative of private businesses to utilise offshore wind energy within the framework of the Renewable Energy Sources Act. This approach instigated the very rapid expansion of wind power capacity on land during the past decade.
Businesses intending to develop an offshore wind project must apply to the proper authority. The coastal Länder are responsible for project licensing within the 12-mile territorial limit and the German government is responsible for licensing in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), with executive competence in the hands of the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency of Germany (Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie - BSH) located in Hamburg. Decisions are based on regulations in the Marine Facilities Ordinance (SeeAnlV). During the licensing process, the BSH holds conferences on applications and organises hearings with participants.
The large number of projects applied for within the exclusive economic zone, some of which are very far from the coast (more than 100 kilometres), is certainly in part a consequence of the legal situation in this zone. Under the Marine Facilities Ordinance, any application to utilise a certain marine area automatically blocks that area for other applicants. It can therefore be assumed that some wind farm projects far from the coast have been applied for only as a means of "reserving" that area of the sea.
It is questionable whether these projects can be realised in the foreseeable future. The long-term development of these areas, beyond 2010, will greatly depend on the economic viability and competitiveness of offshore wind power by that time.
The amendment of the Federal Conservation Law (BnatSchG) adopted on 15 November 2001 by the Bundestag also altered the Marine Facilities Ordinance. Now, different applications can be processed at the same time until one application has achieved licensing status. This effectively prevents the blocking of areas by applicants.<//span></><//>
As a rule, an offshore wind park is connected by a cable system to the landside power grid. The siting of the cable routes on land and in the 12nm zone must be approved by the authorities of the respective German state. The H2-20 project is an exception to this rule. Since the laying of cables to this remote facility is too expensive, the wind energy generated is to be used to produce hydrogen, which will then be carried to the shore by ship.
The approvals procedure for most offshore wind parks in Germany extends from the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) through the 12 nautical mile zone over the mainland to the grid access point. The Offshore Wind Standing Committee of the Federal government and the coastal Länder (in short: StAOWind) was set up to coordinate the approvals procedure. StAOWind brings together the states of Schleswig-Holstein, Lower Saxony, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Bremen, the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology and the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH). Regular meetings have been held since 2002. dena is responsible for the management of StAOWind.