World’s biggest offshore wind farm gets the thumbs up in UK

The UK’s current total wind energy generating capacity of about 4GW could be significantly boosted, with up to 400 turbines approved for construction 120kms off the Yorkshire coast on the Dogger Bank.

Costing between 6-8 billion pounds, the proposed 2,400MW wind farm will be twice the size of the UK’s current largest wind farm, and could supply the UK with 2.5% of its electricity needs.

The scheme’s developers have yet to take a final investment decision and the project will almost certainly have to secure backing under the government’s renewable energy subsidy system, meaning that construction of the first turbine could potentially be a couple years away.

The government’s planning consent however for such a large development was welcomed by the industry.

Nick Medic, director of offshore renewables at RenewableUK, the wind industry trade body, told the Financial Times “this is an awesome project. It will surely be considered as one of the most significant infrastructure projects ever undertaken by the wind industry.”

The wind farm could also be a great economic boost with almost half the costs of construction and operation to be spent on goods and services from UK businesses, whilst also cutting reliance on imported fossil fuels.

The consortium comprises Scottish and Southern Energy, Germany’s RWE, and Norway’s Statoil and Statkraft, the former the country’s majority state-owned oil business and the latter its state-owned electricity company, the Guardian reported.