Germany recently launched a wind measurement project called “MeteOR” to provide data support for the expansion of an offshore wind farm about 280 kilometers off the coast of the Nott Sea. The project is led by the German Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) in cooperation with the German Weather Service (DWD) and the Norwegian private company Fugro Norway. Through the deployment of measurement buoys and subsea equipment, the project will collect key oceanographic data such as wind speed, swell, currents, temperature and other data over the next three years to provide a scientific basis for the planning and construction of the wind farm.

Helge Heegewaldt, president of BSH, said, “This data is a key foundation for offshore wind expansion.” Laser measurement equipment in the project will record wind speeds up to 250 meters, a typical height for offshore wind turbines. Initial measurements show that offshore conditions in the region are highly dynamic, further highlighting the importance of the data collection.Dr. Johannes Hahn, Technical Coordinator at BSH, added: “This information is crucial for the assessment of meteorological and oceanographic conditions and provides an important reference for the future development of offshore wind energy in Germany. ”

The German government plans to achieve a target of 70 GW of offshore wind capacity by 2045, and the construction of wind farms in the North Sea region is key to realizing this goal. While industry groups expressed satisfaction with current progress, they also cautioned that the government will need to maintain policy continuity in the future to ensure the smooth implementation of wind power expansion plans. The data shows that power generation from German North Sea wind farms grows by about 8% in 2024 compared to 2023, indicating a positive trend in the sector. Editor/Xu Shengpeng