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Borkum Riffgrund I

Wind power plant in Lower Saxony, Germany. Approximate location 53.9667, 6.55.

WindLower SaxonyGermanyOffshore hard mount

Borkum Riffgrund I is a 312 MW wind power station in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is operated by Borkum Riffgrund I Offshore Windpark A/S GmbH & Co. oHG. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 266k homes (estimated). It ranks #122 of 1,442 Germany power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 2015, it is around 11 years old — relatively modern. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, wind supplies about 27.2% of Germany's electricity; the national grid averages 330 gCO₂/kWh (59.1% low-carbon) (2025).

312Source-backed capacity
265,503homes powered (est.)
2015commissioned (~11 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id WRI1025854.

Data status

Known data

FacilityBorkum Riffgrund I WRI
CountryGermany · Lower Saxony WRI
Coordinates53.9667, 6.55 WRI
FuelWind WRI
MW installed capacity312 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerBorkum Riffgrund I Offshore Windpark A/S GmbH & Co. oHG WRI
Commissioned2015 WRI
TechnologyOffshore hard mount WRI

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#122 of 1442 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#4 of 25 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers1.65× · 189 MW median · 25 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent265,503 calculated
Climate9.3°C · HDD 3,165 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC3 · 27/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset
CO₂ emissionsnot applicable not applicable

Known, modelled and calculated values are kept separate. Missing fields are shown as unavailable.

Data provenance

The capacity and/or fuel fields on this page include a source-backed provenance label from GEM, an official registry, Wikidata, OSM, or a cross-source match.

capacity: GEM tracker 2026 (location L100000916191); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 312 MW, Borkum Riffgrund I is well above the median wind plant in Germany (189 MW). Technically it is described as Offshore hard mount. Wind turbines convert moving air into electricity; output is variable and site-dependent, and modern turbines deliver some of the lowest-cost new generation on many grids.

Capacity comparison computed from the WRI Global Power Plant Database; fuel-type context is general engineering background.

Capacity vs largest wind plants in Germany

BARD Offshore 1: 400 MW400BARD Offsh…Global Tech I: 400 MW400Global Tec…UW Bertikow: 340 MW340UW BertikowBorkum Riffgrund I: 312 MW312Borkum Rif…OWP Nordsee Ost: 295 MW295OWP Nordse…Amrumbank West: 288 MW288Amrumbank …Baltic 2: 288 MW288Baltic 2Butendiek: 288 MW288Butendiek

Installed capacity (MW), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).

Owner

Operated by Borkum Riffgrund I Offshore Windpark A/S GmbH & Co. oHG.

Local climate & thermal context

This wind plant converts the kinetic energy of wind into electricity through turbine rotors. It sits in a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 54.0°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

9.3°Cannual mean temp
3,165heating degree-days (base 18°C)
0cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
1 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 2 °CJF: 2 °CFM: 4 °CMA: 7 °CAM: 12 °CMJ: 14 °CJJ: 17 °CJA: 17 °CAS: 14 °CSO: 11 °CON: 6 °CND: 4 °CD17 °C

Heating degree-days here run 29% above the median power plant in this dataset — a proxy for how much extra energy heated equipment must replace through its surfaces in winter.

Climate heat-demand index: 67/100 — this site sits in the top third of the power plants we cover by heating degree-days.

Climate normals: WorldClim 2.1 (1970–2000 monthly normals, 10 arc-min, CC BY 4.0); zone: Köppen-Geiger world climate classification (Kottek et al. 2006, 0.5° grid). Degree-days & heat-demand index computed by PowerAtlas — a modelled heat-demand proxy, not a measured site figure.

Site climate & environmental severity

For a plant’s outdoor hardware — heat-recovery steam generators (HRSG), expansion joints, valves, flanges and their insulation — the local climate sets how fast unprotected steel and coatings degrade. This site sits in a moderately corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C3 — Medium), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

C3ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
27/100environmental-severity index
15.1°Cseasonal temperature swing
51 kmdistance to coast

Higher environmental severity is exactly where protective removable insulation pays back most: a sheltered micro-climate slows corrosion, UV and thermal-cycling damage and extends outdoor hardware service life. This is an indicative site-climate context — not a condition assessment of any specific plant or operator.

Indicative estimate via the ISO 9223:2012 informative method (atmospheric corrosivity from temperature, time-of-wetness and airborne salinity), using WorldClim climate normals, the Köppen-Geiger class and coast distance. Indicative, not a measured corrosion rate.

How it compares & nearby plants

The #4 largest wind power plant of 25 in Germany by capacity.

Germany has 25 wind power plants in this dataset, together about 5,050 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 53.9667, 6.55 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Borkum Riffgrund I?

Borkum Riffgrund I is a 312 MW source-record wind power plant in Lower Saxony, Germany, commissioned in 2015.

How many homes can Borkum Riffgrund I power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 265,503 homes (estimated).

Who operates Borkum Riffgrund I?

Borkum Riffgrund I is operated by Borkum Riffgrund I Offshore Windpark A/S GmbH & Co. oHG.

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