Denmark unveiled plans for one or more ‘energy islands’ each supporting at least 10GW of offshore wind at a cost of up to DKr300bn ($44.5bn), in what could be the world’s most ambitious renewable energy scheme to date.

Denmark’s energy ministry said early work to identify possible sites for the massive hubs is now underway, in a move that would allow huge amounts of offshore wind to be harnessed for hard-to-decarbonise sectors such as transport and heating.

A statement from the ministry said the ‘energy island’ concept could cover physical islands or artificial platforms, each acting as a hub for interconnected offshore wind, and supporting facilities such as energy storage or green hydrogen production.

If it advances, the Danish plan could dwarf other offshore wind and renewable energy mega-projects around the world. Each ‘island’ could power 10 million homes, the ministry reckons. The "vast majority" of the DKr 200-300bn needed would come from private investors, it added, but the government has put in an initial DKr65m for exploratory work.

Climate and energy minister Dan Jørgensen said: "It is a huge project. We need to build more than five times as much capacity as we have today. We need a sensible and ambitious plan for expansion. Therefore, we are now engaged in preliminary studies."

Denmark will look at potential sites in the North Sea, Baltic and Kattegat and hold talks with surrounding nations over the plan. It said the first step will be to see “if it is practically possible to establish one or more energy islands in relation to nature, environment and planning”.

Plans for energy islands and interconnected, meshed networks of offshore wind are gathering pace across Europe. Denmark’s own offshore wind pacesetter Orsted recently unveiled plans for a 5GW hub on the island of Bornholm connecting Denmark, Poland, Sweden and Germany, and supporting large-scale production of green hydrogen.

A statement from the ministry said the ‘energy island’ concept could cover physical islands or artificial platforms, each acting as a hub for interconnected offshore wind, and supporting facilities such as energy storage or green hydrogen production.

If it advances, the Danish plan could dwarf other offshore wind and renewable energy mega-projects around the world. Each ‘island’ could power 10 million homes, the ministry reckons. The "vast majority" of the DKr 200-300bn needed would come from private investors, it added, but the government has put in an initial DKr65m for exploratory work.

Climate and energy minister Dan Jørgensen said: "It is a huge project. We need to build more than five times as much capacity as we have today. We need a sensible and ambitious plan for expansion. Therefore, we are now engaged in preliminary studies."

Denmark will look at potential sites in the North Sea, Baltic and Kattegat and hold talks with surrounding nations over the plan. It said the first step will be to see “if it is practically possible to establish one or more energy islands in relation to nature, environment and planning”.

Plans for energy islands and interconnected, meshed networks of offshore wind are gathering pace across Europe. Denmark’s own offshore wind pacesetter Orsted recently unveiled plans for a 5GW hub on the island of Bornholm connecting Denmark, Poland, Sweden and Germany, and supporting large-scale production of green hydrogen.