What happens when four electricity network operators join forces on the Energy Coast? Synergies are created in the best sense of the word. This is currently happening near Heide, where the transmission system operators TenneT Germany, Amprion and 50Hertz as well as the distribution network operator SH Netz are planning Germany's first multiterminal hub alongside the Heide/West substation.

The "HeideHub" in the municipalities of Lieth and Wöhrden is planned to feed large quantities of wind power from offshore wind farms in the North Sea into the regional grid from 2030 onwards and channel it towards Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania via the planned underground cable project NordOstLink and from there to southern Germany. Additionally, a converter for the direct current line Corridor B is being built on the site, which will transport wind power to North Rhine-Westphalia. At what the operator calls "Germany's first multiterminal hub", two offshore grid connections named LanWin2 (TenneT) and LanWin3 (50Hertz) will terminate, bringing up to four gigawatts of wind power from the North Sea onshore. Via the direct current connection NordOstLink, most of the wind power will be forwarded to the SuedOstLink+ and thus directed to the high-consumption southern regions of Germany. However, energy will also be available directly on the west coast and in the region. More than ten million households could theoretically be supplied with green electricity in this way.

Hub of the Energy Transition

The "HeideHub", consisting of direct current switchgear, converter and substation, will in future connect not only LanWin2, LanWin3 and the NordOstLink but also the planned 380-kV line Hochwöhrden – Pöschendorf. TenneT Germany, an important partner of the Energy Coast, is responsible for implementing the grid connection system LanWin2 in this flagship project for the energy network of the future. 50Hertz is implementing LanWin3 and Amprion is planning the converter that will transport wind power via the 525-kV line Corridor B to the consumption centres in North Rhine-Westphalia. In addition to private households, the plan is for this enormous electricity hub to supply power for energy-intensive industries in future. The connection of an electrolyser for the production of green hydrogen is also conceivable. The operators of the HeideHub therefore speak not only of an electricity distribution centre but also of a "green power socket".

Soil Surveys Pave the Way

At the beginning of July, the network operator TenneT started soil investigations at around 100 points between Büsum and Heide to test the stability and conductivity of the subsurface for the approximately 15-kilometre-long land cables of the offshore grid connections LanWin2 and LanWin3. The investigations are a prerequisite for the approval procedure, which is scheduled to begin in spring 2026. Construction is then planned to start in 2028.