The 760 MW Hollandse Kust West VI offshore wind farm in the Dutch North Sea has produced its first power after connecting to TenneT’s offshore grid, with full commercial power delivery expected by the end of 2026.
Located 53 km off the Dutch coast, the wind farm is being developed by Ecowende, a joint venture between Shell, Chubu and Eneco.
The project comprises 52 wind turbines, each with a capacity of 15 MW. Offshore construction started in December 2025 with the installation of the first monopile.
Once fully commissioned, the wind farm is expected to generate 3.3 TWh of renewable electricity annually, equivalent to about 3% of the Netherlands’ total electricity demand.
“We are delighted to produce the first green electrons from the Ecowende wind farm. We often talk about milestones along a project’s journey, and Ecowende has many firsts to date, but to see the turbines spinning and to have reached first power safely and successfully, is a great achievement for everyone involved in the project.
“While this is an important moment to remember, our focus remains on safely commissioning the remaining assets and delivering a reliable offshore wind farm that will generate clean electricity for decades to come,” said Ekansh Aggarwal, Commissioning Manager, Ecowende.
The wind farm is connected to the Dutch onshore grid through TenneT’s offshore high-voltage infrastructure.
Ecowende is also deploying a series of measures aimed at reducing the project’s impact on wildlife. At Ecowende’s initiative, Vestas is fitting seven turbines with a single red-painted blade to test whether increased colour contrast can reduce bird collision risk.
Other measures include a dedicated bird corridor, wider turbine spacing, elevated nacelles, adaptive curtailment and AI-assisted radar monitoring for birds and bats.
Below the waterline, specially designed scour protection incorporates rock crevices and bays intended to provide shelter for fish and other marine species, while fish holes in monopile foundations are being trialled as additional habitat.
Day-to-day operations and maintenance will be carried out by Eneco Wind Offshore Operations and Vestas Services.
Electricity trading is handled by Next Kraftwerke together with SEEL and EET. Next Kraftwerke began marketing the wind farm’s electricity on July 4 and acts as Balancing Service Provider and Congestion Service Provider, managing system integration and congestion across day-ahead, intraday and balancing energy markets on behalf of Ecowende.
The wind farm also provides balancing energy, including automatic negative frequency reserve, by adjusting power fed into the grid to help compensate for frequency fluctuations.
