Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

's western

electrical grid An electrical grid (or electricity network) is an interconnected network for electricity delivery from producers to consumers. Electrical grids consist of power stations, electrical substations to step voltage up or down, electric power tran ...

is part of the Synchronous grid of Continental Europe whereas the eastern part is connected to the Synchronous grid of Northern Europe via Sweden. In 2022, Denmark produced 35 Terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity, with renewable sources constituting 83.3% of the total electricity mix. Wind energy was the largest contributor at 54%, followed by bioenergy and waste at 23%, and solar energy at 6.3%. Coal accounted for 13% of

electricity generation Electricity generation is the process of generating electric power from sources of primary energy. For electric utility, utilities in the electric power industry, it is the stage prior to its Electricity delivery, delivery (Electric power transm ...

, while natural gas and oil combined for a smaller share of 3.8%. Interconnectors to neighboring countries, in particular

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

which exports hydroelectricity and

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

which exports mostly hydroelectricity and nuclear electricity, provide extra power when electricity consumption exceeds generation. The combination of domestic wind power and Norwegian hydroelectricity provides a stable source of renewable, non-biomass electricity (which would be harder to achieve on wind power alone, without energy storage). Denmark is a net importer of electricity. The flow of electricity between Denmark and the countries it has interconnectors with (Norway, Sweden, Germany, Netherlands and the UK), and the direction of that flow, is highly variable and depends on current demand and current Danish wind power output. Danish average consumption of electricity per person was 0.8 MWh less than EU 15 average in 2008. Denmark has average electricity

cost Cost is the value of money that has been used up to produce something or deliver a service, and hence is not available for use anymore. In business, the cost may be one of acquisition, in which case the amount of money expended to acquire it i ...

s (including costs for cleaner energy) in EU,Forbedring af den nationale elprisstatistik for erhverv
page 7. '' Danish Energy Agency'' but general

tax A tax is a mandatory financial charge or levy imposed on an individual or legal entity by a governmental organization to support government spending and public expenditures collectively or to regulate and reduce negative externalities. Tax co ...

es increase the

price A price is the (usually not negative) quantity of payment or compensation expected, required, or given by one party to another in return for goods or services. In some situations, especially when the product is a service rather than a ph ...

to the highest in Europe.Electricity and natural gas price statistics
''EuroStat'', May 2015. In 2015, supply security was over 99.99%, among the highest in the world. The Danish

electricity market An electricity market is a system that enables the exchange of electrical energy, through an electrical grid. Historically, electricity has been primarily sold by companies that operate electric generators, and purchased by consumers or electr ...

is a part of the

Nord Pool Spot Nord Pool AS is a pan-European power exchange. Nord Pool has its main office in Oslo and further offices in Stockholm, Helsinki, Tallinn and London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, lar ...

power exchange.

Sources

Wind

Denmark invested in the wind power development in the 1970s and has had the highest wind share in the world ever since; wind produced the equivalent of 42% of

's total electricity consumption in 2015. Danish consumption of wind turbine generated electricity is the highest in the world per person: 1,218 kWh in 2009. Denmark produced more wind power per person in Denmark in 2009 than either

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

or the UK produced nuclear power per person in their respective countries. In 2022, Denmark led all

International Energy Agency The International Energy Agency (IEA) is a Paris-based autonomous intergovernmental organization, established in 1974, that provides policy recommendations, analysis and data on the global energy sector. The 31 member countries and 13 associatio ...

(IEA) member countries in wind energy utilization for electricity generation, holding a 54% share, notably above the IEA average of 13%. The country's dedication to wind power, coupled with the expansion of other renewable energies, significantly reduced the

carbon intensity Carbon () is a chemical element; it has symbol C and atomic number 6. It is nonmetallic and tetravalent—meaning that its atoms are able to form up to four covalent bonds due to its valence shell exhibiting 4 electrons. It belongs to grou ...

of its electricity production to 92 grams of CO2 per kilowatt-hour (g CO2/kWh).

Coal

In 2022, Denmark generated 34 TWh of electricity with coal. Over the preceding decade, there was a significant change in the composition of its electricity generation, with the share of coal decreasing from 43% to 13%.

Natural gas

Over the last twenty years, Denmark has seen a significant reduction in natural gas production, declining from 30% in 2005 to 13% in 2022. In parallel, the utilization of natural gas for electricity generation has dropped from 24% to 3%, and its contribution to the Total Energy Supply (TES) has decreased from 23% to 9%.

Oil

In 2022, oil made up 37% of Denmark's TES, aligning with the International Energy Agency's (IEA) average of 35%. The share of oil in Denmark's energy supply has been consistent over the past decade. Although it represents a notable portion of the overall energy mix, oil's contribution to electricity generation has been minimal since 2005, contributing less than 0.9% to the country's total electricity production in 2022.

Gross electricity consumption & production in GWh with renewables share

Consumption

According to Nordel annual statistics Denmark's total electricity consumption totaled 36,392 GWh in 2006. Consumption increased about 3% in the period from 2001 to 2006 (in the same time-frame Sweden saw a 3% reduction, Norway a 2% reduction and Finland a 10% increase).Capacity for Competition, Investing for an Efficient Nordic Electricity Market Report
, The Nordic competition authorities 1/2007; Capacity and electricity consumption page 58 Danish consumption of wind-generated electricity topped the world per person: 1,218 kWh. The renewable electricity-sources may give some protection against high annual changes. Electricity consumption fell in Denmark only 4% in the

Great Recession The Great Recession was a period of market decline in economies around the world that occurred from late 2007 to mid-2009.

(while falling 7.1% in

, 7.9% in

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

and 8.6% in the UK; in

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

consumption fell only 0.9%). Danish average consumption of electricity per person was 0.8 MWh less than the EU 15 average of 7.4 MWh in 2008.Energy in Sweden, Facts and figures 2009 and 201
2009 T25
an
2010 T49
In 2019, Danish industry paid around 8 eurocent/kWh for the electricity cost, less than the EU average of 12 c. In 2014, Danish industry paid around 32øre/kWh for the electricity cost, about EU average. Denmark has average electricity

s (including consumer-paid incentives (PSO); costs for cleaner energy) in EU,Electricity prices for industrial consumers
''

Eurostat Eurostat ("European Statistical Office"; also DG ESTAT) is a department of the European Commission ( Directorate-General), located in the Kirchberg quarter of Luxembourg City, Luxembourg. Eurostat's main responsibilities are to provide statist ...

'', October 2015 but

es increase the consumer

to the highest in Europe at around EUR 0.30/kWh. PSO is used for wind, biomass, solar, and district heating; total PSO was DKK 5.8 billion in 2013, of which DKK 3.2 billion went to wind power.Fremskrivning af PSO-udgifter
page 6+17. '' Danish Energy Agency'', 19 May 2014. Retrieved: 17 January 2015. In 2015, the cost of power was only 32% of the price, while PSO was 9%, and tolls and VAT the remaining 59%.Afgiftsstruktur gør el langt dyrere end olie
''CSR.dk'', 29 February 2016 As new

data center A data center is a building, a dedicated space within a building, or a group of buildings used to house computer systems and associated components, such as telecommunications and storage systems. Since IT operations are crucial for busines ...

s come online, Energinet.dk expects consumption to increase by 3.8 TWh in 2023 and by 13 TWh in 2040, compared to 2015. Due to exchange with other countries, Danish consumption of electricity is different from its production. The Environment declaration shows how the physical power is composed of different fuel sources. The General Declaration differs due to trade with green certificates, and does not show actual composition. Due to more wind in Denmark and more

precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls from clouds due to gravitational pull. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, rain and snow mixed ("sleet" in Commonwe ...

in Norway and Sweden, Danish electricity went from 1,216 kg per household in 2014 to 808 kg in 2015 (182g/kWh in 2014). 58% came from wind, water and sun, 19% from coal&lignite, and 4% from nuclear. In 2022, Denmark produced 35 Terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity and consumed 32 TWh. The industrial sector was the largest electricity consumer, at 36% of total consumption, followed closely by residential buildings at 31%, and the services sector buildings at 30%. The transport sector had the smallest share, at 2.9%.

Production

Mode of production

The total installed power capacity was 12.5 GW in 2001 and in the end of 2006 12.7 GW including 9.5 GW from natural gas, coal and oil and 3.1 GW wind power. Denmark has almost no

hydropower Hydropower (from Ancient Greek -, "water"), also known as water power or water energy, is the use of falling or fast-running water to Electricity generation, produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by energy transformation, ...

, and no

pumped storage Pumping may refer to: * The operation of a pump, for moving a liquid from one location to another **The use of a breast pump A breast pump is a mechanical device that Lactation, lactating women use to milking, extract milk from their breasts. They ...

. Denmark had the 6th best

energy security Energy security is the association between national security and the availability of natural resources for energy consumption (as opposed to household energy insecurity). Access to cheaper energy has become essential to the functioning of modern ...

in the world in 2014, although this includes non-electrical energy. Denmark has 1250 MW of methane-fueled distributed power plants supplying district heating. Their electricity production decreased to a third during the ten years from 2010 to 2019, but power capacity remained the same
Current power system data
are provided by Energinet.dk an
EMD

Power stations

Producers

Main power producing companies operating in the Danish market are Ørsted A/S and

Vattenfall Vattenfall is a Swedish multinational corporation, multinational electrical power industry, power company owned by the List of government enterprises of Sweden, Swedish state. Beyond Sweden, the company generates power in Denmark, Finland, Germa ...

. The current market structure was designed in 2003–2006 by a number of mergers and transactions. In January 2003, Ørsted (then called DONG Energy) acquires a 64% share in the regional power company EnergiGruppen Jylland, which owned 3.1% of the electricity producer Elsam. At the same year Elsam acquired 78.8% of retail sales operator NESA and later took a full control of the company. At the same time, NESA owned 36% in other electricity producer Energy E2. In 2004, EnergiGruppen Jylland increased its stake in Elsam to 24% and on 10 December 2004 Ørsted and Elsam announce announced their planned merger. Ørsted increased its stake in Elsam to 64.7% while Swedish power producer Vattenfall had acquired a blocking stake of 35.3%. In 2005, Ørsted purchased municipal utilities Københavns Energi and Frederiksberg Forsyning, including their 34% and 2.26% stakes in Energi E2. In May 2005, Ørsted and Vattenfall agreed split of assets in Elsam and Energi E2. Vattenfall received Amager Power Station, Fyn Power Station, Nordjylland Power Station, two decentralised gas-fired plants in

Zealand Zealand ( ) is the largest and most populous islands of Denmark, island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size) at 7,031 km2 (2715 sq. mi.). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 Januar ...

, a portfolio of Danish and international wind activities, and a 30% stake in a German wind development for exchange of Vattenfall's 35% stake in Elsam and 40% stake in the Avedøre 2 Power Station. The agreement and merger of Ørsted, Elsam, NESA, Københavns Energi, and Frederiksberg Forsyning to form Ørsted Energy was approved by the

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the primary Executive (government), executive arm of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with a number of European Commissioner, members of the Commission (directorial system, informall ...

in 2006 and consequently came into force on 2 July 2006. Due to a reduction in PSO-money, combined heat and power plants receive an estimated DKK 2.5 billion less in 2019.

Competition

The Danish Council decided that the Danish producer Elsam (now Ørsted) abused its dominant position in Denmark to raise prices in the period 2003–2006.

Coal transition

Since 2006, Denmark has seen a steady decline in coal use for electricity generation, with demand dropping by 80% since 2005, notwithstanding a slight uptick in 2021. The country, lacking domestic coal production, has primarily relied on coal imports from Russia, South Africa, and Colombia. However, these imports have decreased by 90% since 2005. Reacting to

Russia's invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

in February 2022, Denmark ceased all coal imports from Russia. The shift from coal is progressing, with an anticipated complete phase-out in heat and electricity production by 2028. Ørsted is set to end coal use in its co-generation plants by January 2023. Furthermore, the Fynsværket plant in Odense is moving to gas, while the Nordjyllandsværket plant in Aalborg is scheduled to shut down by 2028.

Trade

Over the past 15 years, Denmark has primarily been a net importer of electricity, except in 2006, 2007, and 2010 when it was a net exporter. The trend towards increased net imports commenced between 2013 and 2015, coinciding with the nation's phase-out of coal-fired power generation, and since then, net imports have remained steady at around 5 Terawatt-hours (TWh) annually through 2021. In 2022, Denmark exported 7.5 TWh of electricity to Germany and the Netherlands and imported 10 TWh from Norway and Sweden. Looking ahead, Denmark is anticipated to shift towards becoming a net exporter, facilitated by the expansion of

interconnector An interconnector (also known as a DC tie in the USA) is a structure which enables high-voltage DC electricity to flow between electrical grids, connecting separate AC networks, or linking synchronous grids. It may be formed of submarine power ...

capacities, the launch of the

Viking Link Viking Link is a 1,400 megawatt, MW high-voltage direct current, HVDC submarine power cable between the United Kingdom and Denmark, which was completed in 2023. , it is the longest land and subsea HVDC interconnector in the world. The project is ...

—a 1,400 MW high-voltage direct current (DC) interconnector with the United Kingdom—and an increase in wind power generation.

Transmission

Denmark has two separate transmission systems, of which the eastern one is synchronous with Nordic (former NORDEL) and the western one with the

synchronous grid of Continental Europe The Continental Europe Synchronous Area (CESA), formerly known as the UCTE grid, is one of the largest synchronous electrical grids in the world, primarily operating in Europe. It is interconnected as a single phase-locked mains frequency el ...

.Gellert, Bjarne Christian
Electricity interconnections
'' Energinet.dk'', 22 August 2011. Accessed: 6 December 2011. The 600 MW DC

Great Belt Power Link The Great Belt power link (Storebælt HVDC), also known as the Great Belt electricity link, is a HVDC, high-voltage direct-current interconnection across the Great Belt between Funen and Zealand (Denmark), Zealand connecting two power transmission ...

connecting the two systems was commissioned in July 2010, started commercial operations in August 2010, and was inaugurated on 7 September 2010. The

Little Belt The Little Belt (, ) is a strait between the island of Funen and the Jutland Peninsula in Denmark. It is one of the three Danish straits, Danish Straits that drain and connect the Baltic Sea to the Kattegat strait, which drains west to the Nor ...

cables are 400 kV AC at 1,100 MW and replaced overhead wires in 2013.

Bornholm Bornholm () is a List of islands of Denmark, Danish island in the Baltic Sea, to the east of the rest of Denmark, south of Sweden, northeast of Germany and north of Poland. Strategically located, Bornholm has been fought over for centuries. I ...

is connected to

Scania Scania ( ), also known by its native name of Skåne (), is the southernmost of the historical provinces of Sweden, provinces () of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous w ...

in Sweden through a cable. The Danish transmission system is owned and operated by Energinet.dk, which was created by a merger of power grid operators Eltra, Elkraft System and Elkraft Transmission, and by natural gas transmission system operator Gastra. The merger took place on 24 August 2005 with retrospective effect from 1 January 2005. Eltra and Elkraft were communally owned by the respective region's distribution companies (Eltra west of the

Great Belt The Great Belt (, ) is a strait between the major islands of Zealand (''Sjælland'') and Funen (''Fyn'') in Denmark. It is one of the three Danish Straits. Effectively dividing Denmark in two, the Belt was served by the Great Belt ferries fr ...

and Elkraft east of it). The high-voltage transmission assets were transferred to the Danish State and later to Energinet.dk at no cost. Since 1997, Elkraft and Eltra operated as fully unbundled companies from the power generating companies. , nearly all low-voltage (<10 kV) power lines run as underground cables. For medium voltage around 50-60 kV 40% are buried, while 25% of high-voltage (132-400 kV) are ground cables. , Denmark has about 2-3% transmission losses. Denmark sits at an electricity crossroads between the larger electricity markets in Scandinavia and Germany, and facilitates power trade between these. In 2014, electricity generation was 592 TWh in Germany, 150 TWh in Sweden, 141 TWh in Norway, and 31 TWh in Denmark. Several direct current cables connect the two Danish systems to neighboring countries. The western Danish power grid is connected to Norway with 1,700 MW (

Skagerrak The Skagerrak (; , , ) is a strait running between the North Jutlandic Island of Denmark, the east coast of Norway and the west coast of Sweden, connecting the North Sea and the Kattegat sea. The Skagerrak contains some of the busiest shipping ...

) and Sweden with 740 MW (

Konti–Skan Konti–Skan (also known as Kontiskan) is the name of High-voltage direct current, high-voltage direct-current transmission line between Denmark (DK1) and Sweden (SE3). Technical description Kontiskan is a bipolar HVDC scheme. Pole 1 (Kontiska ...

). The 700 MW (

COBRAcable COBRAcable (''COpenhagen-BRussels-Amsterdam cable'') is a ±320 kV, 700 MW High-voltage direct current, HVDC submarine power cable pair between Eemshaven, the Netherlands and Endrup near Esbjerg, Denmark. The cable is jointly owned by E ...

) connects Jutland and the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

,Torben Glar Nielsen.
Energinet.dk has approved the business case for Cobra cable
" '' Energinet.dk'', 13 January 2014. Accessed: 20 January 2014. and the 1,400 MW

is planned to connect Jutland and England.Torben Glar Nielsen.
Denmark set to make billions from electricity interconnector between the UK and Denmark and new interconnection with Germany
" '' Energinet.dk'', 16 March 2016. Accessed: 16 March 2016. Larger alternating current connections also exist; 1,780 MW between Germany and

Jutland Jutland (; , ''Jyske Halvø'' or ''Cimbriske Halvø''; , ''Kimbrische Halbinsel'' or ''Jütische Halbinsel'') is a peninsula of Northern Europe that forms the continental portion of Denmark and part of northern Germany (Schleswig-Holstein). It ...

,Skødt, Torben.
Electricity interconnections
" '' Energinet.dk'', 20 February 2014. Accessed: January 2015. and a second 400kV AC line is planned between Jutland and Germany. East Denmark is connected to Germany with 600 MW DC ( Kontek) and the 400 MW cable via the

Kriegers Flak ''Kriegers Flak'' is a reef located in the Baltic Sea, north of Rügen, south of Skåne with its west most point about 15 km east of Møn. It is named after the Danish naval officer Christian Krieger, who in 1840 mapped the Baltic Sea. The Dan ...

offshore wind farm Offshore wind power or offshore wind energy is the generation of electricity through wind farms in bodies of water, usually at sea. There are higher wind speeds offshore than on land, so offshore farms generate more electricity per amount of ca ...

.Wittrup, Sanne.
Sjælland får ny, millliard-dyr elforbindelse til Tyskland
''

Ingeniøren ''Ingeniøren'' (full name: ''Nyhedsmagasinet Ingeniøren'', literally ''The News Magazine "The Engineer"'') is a Danish weekly newspaper specialising in engineering topics. History and profile The paper has covered science and technology issues ...

'', 19 December 2014. Accessed: January 2015. Zealand can import 1,700 MW from Sweden (export capacity is less).

Synchronous condenser In electrical engineering, a synchronous condenser (sometimes called a syncon, synchronous capacitor or synchronous compensator) is a DC-excited synchronous motor, whose shaft is not connected to anything but spins freely. Its purpose is not to c ...

s (syncons) assist grid stability; 3 in the western grid and 2 in the eastern grid, some with capacities reaching -140 to 270 MVAr. A limit of ±15 MVAr is set as a measure of grid quality. Total export and import capacities were 2,510 MW and 2,870 MW respectively in 2007. The actual import and export capacities were typically 60% of the nominal capacities. Studies showed inefficient markets in 2006. In 2014 (before cables to Netherlands and Kriegers), Denmark had an electricity interconnection level (transmission capacity relative to production capacity) of 44%, compared to

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

at 61% and Hungary at 29%. COM/2015/082 final: "Achieving the 10% electricity interconnection target
TextPDF
page 2-5. ''

'', 25 February 2015
ArchiveMirror
/ref>

References

External links

Statistics from 2006 (in Danish)
figure 10 shows the distribution companies and figure 44 the transmission grid
High voltage grid of DenmarkArchiveExport capacities in XLS spreadsheet
{{Europe topic, Electricity sector in