Oxford, September 6th, 2010 Fornahl, Hassink, Klaerding ...oisd.brookes.ac.uk/news/resources/Hassink...

Oxford, September 6th, 2010 Fornahl, Hassink, Klaerding, Moßig

New path creation in regional economies: the case of the offshore wind energy

industry in northern Germany

Dirk Fornahl (1), Robert Hassink (2), Claudia Klaerding (2), Ivo Moßig (3)

(1) Bremen Institute of Applied Economic Research, Germany (2) Dept. of Geography at the University of Kiel, Germany(3) Dept. of Geography at the University of Bremen, Germany


The paper aims at testing the concepts of windows of locational opportunity and path creation in order to explain the emergence of the offshore wind energy industry in three regions of coastal Germany

Are traditional shipbuilding companies involved in it? Are competences, skills and routines available that can be used? What is the role of regional industrial policy in the regional states (Länder) in fostering restructuring into this new field?


Source: Nuhn 1998, VSM annual reports, www.wind-energie.de


Source: EWEA “Wind at Work” 2009


1. Introduction

2. Path creation and regional development: a theoretical framework

3. The case of the offshore wind energy industry in northern Germany

4. Conclusions


2. Regional path creation and regional development: a theoretical framework

How do paths come into being? (Martin & Sunley 2006)

• Path creation as random

• Mixture of limiting conditions and chance events

• Random events as misconception of the meaning of path dependence: dependence between successive paths, role of place dependence

New industrial spaces, windows of locational opportunity, path dependence model


1.) Localization

A new industry arises at severalpoints away from older industrialareas.

2.) Clustering

One startup area surges aheadwhile others decline or grow moreslowly.

3.) Dispersal

Growth peripheries of the newindustry arise away from the coreterritory of the new industrie.

4.) Shifting Center

A new center of an industry risesup to challenge the old (peripheraldispersal may continue under thesting of new competition).


Source: Sydow et al. 2005


Source: Martin 2010

Towards an alternative path dependence model of local industrial evolution


3. The case of the offshore wind energy industry in northern Germany


Primary actors:

Energy concerns (E.on, EnBW, Vattenfall, RWE)

Turbine manufacturers (Siemens, Repower, Vestas, Bard, Nordex, Multibrid)

Foundation and tower builders (WestWind)

Secondary actors:

Service and maintenance firms

Logistic firms

Construction firms (Züblin)

Shipbuilders (HDW, Nordic Yards)


4. Conclusions

Path creation rather than windows of locationalopportunity explains the emergence of offshore wind energy

However, the shipbuilding industry hardly played a role in initiating the emergence of the offshore wind energy industry in Northern Germany

But benefits from it: platforms, quays, facilities, special ships

Bremen leads (natural factors, size of sites, facilities, active policies), Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern are followers

Oxford, September 6th, 2010 Fornahl, Hassink, Klaerding ...oisd.brookes.ac.uk/news/resources/Hassink...

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