Germany's first offshore windfarm should go into operation in the Baltic Sea in 2009, the companies building it said on Wednesday as the government set new targets for renewable energy use.
Turbine maker Nordex said it would deliver 21 modern windmills to the British energy supplier WPD for the project.
It will be called "Baltic 1" and situated 13 kilometres (eight miles) off the coast of Germany's northeastern Darss peninsula.
The ocean is around 15 to 19 metres (50 to 62 feet) deep in this area, the company said.
The first turbine will be installed in May 2009 and the project will ultimately have a wind power capacity of 52.5 megawatts, Nordex said in a statement.
Germany has lagged behind other European nations in setting up offshore windfarms but it is now facing a shortage of available land surface for windfarm projects.
The German cabinet on Wednesday approved a new target of making renewable energy contribute between 25 and 30 percent of the country's energy needs by 2020, compared to the current level of 12 percent.
It is part of a host of new laws designed to help the country meet its stated goal of cutting carbon dioxide gas emissions by 40 percent by 2020.
