Amazon, hydrogen, batteries and floating solar: is this offshore wind's ultimate multi-tasker?

It is co-built by an oil giant, has Amazon as a customer, will be tapped for green hydrogen and share its seaspace with solar – Hollandse Kust North (HKN) could be offshore wind’s most versatile project so far.

HKN in Dutch waters sent its first megawatts to the Dutch grid today (Monday) said CrossWind, the Shell-Eneco JV behind the wind farm which is using 11MW turbines from Siemens Gamesa at its site 18.5km off North Holland.

Amazon in 2021 agreed to buy electricity from around halfHKN’s capacity from next year, while Shell itself will use another chunk of its power to produce green hydrogen in the Port of Rotterdam.

CrossWind earlier this year also agreed what was billed as a world-first deal to deploy a floating solar array between the turbines and plans to use ‘megawatt scale’ battery systems at the site.

CrossWind expects HKN – arguably one of offshore wind's most successful attempts yet to embrace different routes to market and technical innovations – to be fully operational by the end of 2023.

The project forms part of the Netherlands’ vast plans to install 21GW by the end of the decade and 70GW by 2050.(Copyright)

cover photo:RenewEconomy