Offshore wind power: ‘He Dreiht’ now operational – the North Sea is getting busier

EnBW is celebrating the commissioning of its new wind farm in the North Sea today, Thursday 17 September 2026, in Hamburg. However, this date does not mark the first flow of electricity: the first turbines at ‘He Dreiht’ have already been feeding electricity into the grid for several months. The ceremony therefore marks the completion of a major project, not its technical launch.

Germany’s largest wind farm

He Drehs With an installed capacity of 960 megawatts, it is currently Germany’s largest offshore wind farm. It is situated around 85 kilometres north-west of Borkum and approximately 110 kilometres west of Heligoland, within Germany’s exclusive economic zone. Each of the 64 turbines has a capacity of 15 megawatts, totalling 960 megawatts. During the construction phase, more than 500 people worked on the site at times, supported by more than 60 vessels.

The converter platform bundles the power from the plants BorWin epsilon. It converts alternating current at sea into direct current so that it can be transmitted to shore with fewer losses.

The security zone will remain in place even after the celebration

For sailors, it is not so much the installed capacity that matters as the area the farm permanently occupies. BWith effect from 13 March 2026, the Federal Office for Maritime Affairs and Hydrography has established a joint safety zone for He Dreiht, the BorWin epsilon converter platform, the Nordlicht I wind farm currently under construction and its BorWin kappa platform. The safety zone extends to a distance of 500 metres, measured from any point on the outer edge of the two offshore wind farms and their converter platforms. The wind turbines that serve as the corner points from which the extent of the safety zone is measured are listed below in the the relevant current notice to mariners (BfS) of the competent North Sea Waterways and Shipping Authority.

Irrespective of this, driving through wind farms in Germany will be strictly prohibited from the end of 2025.

The next park is already being built right next to it

The opening of “He Dreiht” is not the end of the story. Just to the south, Vattenfall is already building Nordlicht I comprising 68 15-megawatt turbines; commissioning is scheduled for 2028. The safety zone has therefore been extended to cover this construction site. Planning permission has also been granted for Nordlicht II: 44 plants with a combined capacity of 660 megawatts; construction is scheduled to begin in 2027 according to the current plan.

Further south, too, the area has become more confined. The shared zone of the Gode Wind 1, 2 and 3 wind farms now also includes the planned NC 1 and NC 2 wind farms. This safety zone is situated within the wind farm area in the German Bight: north to north-west of Norderney and Juist, between the traffic separation schemes ‘German Bight Western Approach’ to the west and ‘Jade Approach’ to the east. For navigation purposes, it can be roughly defined as the area between 54°00′ and 54°06′ north and 006°49′ and 007°08′ east. (elwis.de). A separate safety zone applies to the Borkum Riffgrund 3 construction site.

Impact on the coast as well

Infrastructure is also expanding along the East Frisian coast: offshore grid connection systems are currently being built there to link the offshore wind farms to the onshore electricity grid. During the construction work in the Wadden Sea between the coastal towns and the North Sea islands of Baltrum and Norderney, the tidal channels are used at high tide to transport materials such as cable protection pipes and to lay subsea cables. Consequently, from this year until, it is expected, 2029, there will be temporary disruptions during the summer months, in some cases, closures of the tidal channels lasting several days, which must be taken into account when planning a sailing trip.

Book recommendations

Cruising Guide: North Sea Coast 1: Cuxhaven to Den Helder covers the southern German Bight and the Dutch North Sea. This volume brings together information on the sailing area and ports for Borkum, the Ems, the Jade and Heligoland, and explains navigation and seamanship in the tidal waters. .

Cruising Guide: North Sea Coast 2: From the Elbe to Sylt focuses on the northern German North Sea coast. Among the destinations featured are Heligoland, the River Elbe, Cuxhaven, Büsum, Sylt, Föhr and Amrum. As well as providing information on the sailing areas and harbours, the book explains the specific challenges of sailing in tidal waters.