Malta has entered into a renewed non-binding agreement on goals for expanding offshore renewable generation in 2050.
Through this agreement, Malta aims at deploying 350MW of offshore renewable capacity by 2050, with intermediate steps in 2040 and 2030 of 350MW and 500MW respectively.
The National Energy and Climate Plan identifies that the development of floating offshore renewables in Malta will contribute to greenhouse gas emission reductions, renewable energy penetration, energy security, research and innovation, and competitiveness.
Hurd’s Bank is one of Malta’s two officially designated floating wind zones and is fully suitable for a 500 MW project, although it requires maritime rezoning and grid infrastructure upgrades. Floating wind turbines at Hurd’s Bank are technically feasible and are now included in a 300 MW offshore wind tender, with projected costs of around €1 billion and a realistic operational timeline in the early to mid-2030s. So far three applications were submitted, one local, another Greek and the third of Italian origin. What can readers need to know about this location? Briefly, Hurd’s Bank sits within Malta’s EEZ and is already identified by the government as a prime offshore renewable zone.
Its shallow depth of 50-150m (depending on location) make it ideal for floating platforms. Essentially the design incorporates 20-25 turbines (12-15 MW class) run on floating platforms (semi-submersible or spar). The offshore site will be linked via a 132 kV export cable system to Malta’s grid, with an expected future output of 0.8TWH of clean electricity. What are the costs associated with this heroic project?
The official tender places the contract value at €1.007 billion for a 300 MW floating wind farm. This is made up of circa €550 million for turbines and floating platforms apart from the cost of €250 million for an offshore substation and cables. Installation and other logistics will add another €250 million. Naturally there will be further costs of licences, permits and similar contingencies amounting to €50 million.
The entire operation is expected to incur annual running costs of approximately €30 million. Over the next two years, the process will involve the selection of the final design, further environmental impact assessments, and the formal launch of the project. It is expected to take three more years for the fabrication of floating platforms and latest design turbines and work on the offshore station. By 2033, it is planned to start the tow out, installation and final commissioning with a realistic earliest operational date by 2034. A potential drawback is the anticipated opposition from local agents representing shipowners who currently use Hurd’s Bank for lucrative bunkering operations; consequently, the rezoning process will need to be redesigned. Naturally, Malta’s own grid needs a majority retrofit to be able to absorb high voltage reaching a 132 KV infrastructure and the successful completion of an EIA.
Off the eastern tip of Malta lies Hurd’s Bank, a stretch of open sea known as a bunkering area where cargo ships anchor to refuel and resupply. Over the years, it has become a hotspot for a wide array of maritime activity – both legal and illicit. The history of Hurd’s Bank has its own melodrama. Quoting Marica Micallef, she writes that by December 2016, it was hailed as the only free offshore anchorage in Europe. That same year, reports emerged of the area being used to profit from Libya’s ongoing civil conflict, facilitating the sale of subsidised Libyan fuel obtained from the Port of Zwara.
The following years saw Hurd’s Bank acquire a shadowy reputation. In 2017, a Libyan government minister accused the so-called “Maltese mafia” of using the waters to smuggle Libyan fuel. By 2018, journalists described Hurd’s Bank as a “paradise for traffickers”. Further controversy is likely to emerge, as the area featured on international headlines due to Russian ship-to-ship oil transfers bound for Venezuela, which was under sanctions.
Observers reported that light petroleum distillates, such as naphtha, were mixed with heavy crude oil in complex operations involving at least 13 tankers. Again, more recently in 2020, the area drew attention for human smuggling, as Xinhuanet reported a vessel using Hurd’s Bank while Malta’s ports were closed due to Covid-19 restrictions. In May 2022, Finance Minister Clyde Caruana announced plans to incorporate 900 square kilometres of the area into Malta’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), opening the door for projects ranging from renewable energy to hydrogen storage, fish farms, and even artificial islands. In 2023, the European Commission adopted the EU Wind Power Package.
This includes a European Wind Power Action Plan (COM(2023)669) aimed at accelerating the deployment of wind projects and a Communication on achieving the EU’s offshore wind ambitions (COM(2023)668). The Communication builds on the 2020 Offshore Renewable Energy Strategy and proposes infrastructural, permitting, financing, innovation, skill, and supply chain measures with the aim of reaching the EU’s targets through 12 GW of offshore wind installations per year. In parallel, pursuant to Article 14(1) of the TEN-E Regulation (EU) 2022/869, the December 2024 initiative reaffirms Malta’s commitment to clean energy generation, identifying offshore renewable energy as a key driver in reducing the country’s dependence on fossil fuels.
In summary, having secured our acreage in the sea due to EEZ, one hopes that after the national election, we secure foreign investment to erect massive PV floating panels in Hurd’s Bank to generate renewable energy, thereby reducing our carbon footprint.
George M. Mangion is senior partner at PKF Malta
