Europe already lost the solar race to China. It does not want to lose wind the same way.
So Germany is lining up public money behind a homegrown wind project. Cheaper options sit right there, but Berlin is paying up anyway.
Germany is weighing up to €300 million in loan guarantees for an offshore wind platform in the Baltic Sea. Offshore wind platforms sit out at sea and feed power back to shore.
A loan guarantee means the government promises to cover the debt if the project cannot pay. That lowers the risk for everyone lending the money.
The platform itself is a converter station. It is the giant unit that turns offshore wind power into electricity the grid can use.
Without it, the power from far-off turbines cannot reach homes. A converter platform is also one of the priciest parts of any offshore project.
Grid operator 50Hertz is set to confirm that a group including Germany's own Siemens Energy won the deal. It will build the 2-gigawatt version, enough to power a couple million homes.
The operator plans to name the winner this week.
A final call on the guarantees could follow soon after.
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Backing a local champion costs more than buying from China. Germany is doing it anyway.
The reason is solar. A decade ago, Chinese factories undercut everyone on price, and Europe's solar makers mostly vanished. Berlin does not want to watch that happen again.
China now makes more than 80% of the world's solar panels. Wind leaders fear the same ending.
Wind gear is bulky and costly to ship, yet low prices still win the deals.
China's turbine makers are pushing into Europe with low prices and heavy state support. The worry is they take over wind the way they took over panels.
That is why Berlin wants a strong local builder to win this job, even at a higher price. German wind leaders have warned against ceding the field to China.
This one platform is really a down payment on a bigger plan. Berlin figures Europe needs around €16 billion in guarantees by 2030 to keep its wind industry standing.
Part of that would flow through KfW, the German state bank, to back new and bigger turbine factories. The money would be a promise to step in, not cash up front.
The guarantees act like a backstop for the banks that lend to those projects. That makes building at home less risky.
Watch whether other European governments follow with their own cash. Some may worry about a fresh subsidy race with Beijing.
Either way, the cost of competing with China keeps climbing.
One country protecting its makers is a policy. The whole bloc doing it becomes a trade fight.
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