The UK energy regulator Ofgem will launch a tender round covering the transmission infrastructure for Ørsted’s 2.9 GW Hornsea 3 offshore wind farm on October 21.
The competition is estimated to be worth around £3.5 billion (approximately €4 billion), making it the largest Offshore Transmission Owner (OFTO) tender round to date.
The competitive process will seek an owner for the project’s offshore transmission assets, which carry electricity generated by the wind farm to the onshore grid.
Hornsea 3’s offshore transmission system comprises two offshore converter stations, which were installed by September 2026, and offshore export cables, the first of which was laid and pulled ashore at the beginning of this year. The transmission infrastructure also includes onshore cables and a converter station in Norfolk, connecting the wind farm to the national grid.
Located around 120 kilometers off the Norfolk coast, Hornsea 3 will comprise 197 Siemens Gamesa 14 MW turbines. Foundation installation began earlier this year, and inter-array cable installation is scheduled to start in October. The project is expected to enter operation in 2027.
Ofgem’s previous tender round (Round 13) covered the transmission assets for East Anglia Three, Inch Cape and Dogger Bank C, with a combined estimated value of £3.5 billion. With Round 14 for the Hornsea 3 assets estimated to be worth the same, this will be the largest OFTO competition to date, according to Ofgem.