AquaVentus participated in the federal states and associations hearing on the draft bill for the third amendment to the Offshore Wind Energy Act (WindSeeG). AquaVentus explicitly welcomes the fact that the draft consistently implements the coalition agreement mandate to enable hybrid connections (cable and H₂ pipeline) and creates, for the first time, a solid legal basis for offshore sector coupling.
At the same time, AquaVentus points out that the restriction to SEN-1 does not close the "double regulatory gap" between the FEP and NEP. As long as offshore sector coupling is legally limited to SEN-1, the Federal Network Agency cannot factor its systemic benefits for Zone 4 and 5 into NEP modelling. AquaVentus calls for a clear regulatory pathway for the next opening step, the explicit crediting of wind energy capacity on SEN-1 towards the 70 GW expansion target, and a quantified offshore hydrogen capacity target of at least 4 GW by 2045.