The permit for the Zeevonk wind farm is being amended

The permit for the IJmuiden Ver Beta wind farm is being drastically revised. According to the Zeevonk consortium, consisting of Vattenfall and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), it is no longer feasible to complete the project according to the permit agreements. This is due to the delay in the completion of the Delta Rhine Corridor (DRC). The farm is not due to be fully completed until 2032, and the bid has been reduced by €400 million.

The DRC allows green hydrogen produced at Maasvlakte to be transported to customers in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany. The pipeline is vital to the wind farm, which was intended to produce green hydrogen using a 1 GW electrolyzer at Maasvlakte, from which the DRC would transport the energy carrier to customers. The DRC was originally scheduled for commissioning at the end of 2028 but has been postponed to 2032 after Zeevonk received the permit.

This delay limits the green hydrogen market to consumers on the Maasvlakte, causing Zeevonk to miss out on a large portion of its expected revenue. Due to challenges in the electrification of energy-intensive industries, among other things, Zeevonk will likely be unable to bridge this period by selling electricity.

By thoroughly amending the permit, the ministry hopes to ensure that the wind farm can still be built. This means the farm will be constructed in two phases. First, 1 GW will be realized as planned in 2029. Then, another 1 GW will not be completed until 2032, so that the wind farm's completion will coincide with the completion of the DRC.

This change impacts the 2030 climate targets, to which the wind farm currently contributes only half. It also has financial consequences for TenneT, which previously signed contracts for the construction of the offshore grid at the government's behest. Due to the delay, the grid operator will have to make new agreements with suppliers. The minister did not specify the amount of the additional costs. However, the additional costs—after review by the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM)—will be included in the grid tariffs.

That the postponement of the construction of the IJmuiden Ver Beta wind farm is detrimental to TenneT was already apparent when Vattenfall objected to its own permit. The energy company argued in March that there was insufficient time to connect the wind turbines to TenneT's transformer platform. With the objection, it aims to avoid fines of up to €200 million. TenneT responded negatively at the time : "These are deadlines agreed upon in the tender criteria. We will implement them."

In its offer, Zeevonk had promised to realize at least 1 GW of electrolysis. This will be reduced to 500 MW with the permit amendment. This will also not be required until after 2033, when the DRC is operational, so that green hydrogen can also be sold in the rest of the Netherlands and possibly neighboring countries.

Zeevonk won the tender with a total bid of €800 million, spread over forty years. That total amount will be reduced to €400 million. The minister writes that this €400 million shortfall will be included in the draft budget for 2026.

The cabinet made these changes after extensive discussions with Zeevonk. It also commissioned KPMG to investigate whether the permit changes are financially justifiable, given the financial and economic consequences for Zeevonk caused by the DRC delay. KPMG concludes, among other things, that it is reasonable to compensate Zeevonk for the consequences of the DRC delay and that there appears to be no overcompensation.

Without the amendments, Zeevonk would likely no longer have been able to build the wind farm, which would likely require a new permit. "This scenario leads to further delays in the realization and the loss of almost the entire financial offer from Zeevonk (€780 million, the first payment has already been received)," said the minister. Given the challenging market conditions for offshore wind energy, the government also expects little interest from other wind farm developers to build this wind farm at this time.