Wedoany.com Report-Mar 11, The German Wind Energy Offshore Association (BWO) is appealing to the Government to use direct a portion of a special fund of €500bn to support port expansion.

The BWO is calling on politicians to take port expansion into account as a national priority in the negotiations concerning the special fund, to “strengthen both the energy transition and Germany's security resilience”.

The list of investment areas under consideration by the Government includes energy infrastructure and transport infrastructure – both of which are essential elements for the expansion of offshore wind energy.

"Ports play a central role in the energy transition and security policy in equal measure. Their heavy-duty areas can be used for the expansion of offshore wind energy as well as for military purposes.

“Unfortunately, such areas are still too scarce in Germany.

“A corresponding expansion would improve the location conditions for the German offshore wind industry and at the same time contribute to strengthening security policy," said Stefan Thimm (pictured), Managing Director of the BWO.

The port of Esbjerg in Denmark could serve as a model, which has expanded its capacities for both offshore wind expansion and military use through targeted investments.

The European Investment Bank recently provided €115m for the Danish port to optimise the infrastructure for dual use.

"Without a clear strategy to provide sufficient funds, the future federal government would jeopardize the timely expansion of offshore wind energy and carelessly miss the opportunity for jobs and value creation along the German coasts.

"I am pleased that last year the CDU/CSU parliamentary group supported the demand of the port industry and the states to increase the port burden equalisation from the current 38 million euros to at least 400 million euros per year," said Thimm.