Government green-lights world’s largest offshore wind farm

Energy Secretary Ed Davey has given the go-ahead for the giant Dogger Bank Creyke Beck offshore wind farm in the North Sea which is being hailed as one of the most significant infrastructure projects ever undertaken by the wind industry.


The Dogger Bank Creyke Beck A and B wind project is now the largest consented offshore wind project in the world. It will have a maximum capacity of 2400MW and will generate enough electricity to power almost two million homes once built.

The wind farm project is expected to support up to 900 green jobs in the Yorkshire and Humberside region and bring millions of pounds’ worth of investment to the nation’s economy.

Cutting-edge

Announcing the decision on Tuesday, Davey said: “Making the most of Britain’s home-grown energy is creating jobs and businesses in the UK, getting the best deal for consumers and reducing our reliance on foreign imports. Wind power is vital to this plan, with £14.5bn invested since 2010 into an industry which supports 35,400 jobs.”

The proposed site of the two adjacent wind farms is 81 miles from the shore at its closest point, covering a maximum area of 430 square miles. Each of the sites will have a capacity of up to 1.2GW and will reduce carbon emissions by almost four million tonnes a year.

This is the first consented phase of the much larger Dogger Bank zone, which comprises six sites with an estimated total capacity of up to 7.2GW.

Pushing the envelope

Welcoming the announcement, RenewableUK’s director of offshore renewables Nick Medic said: “This is an awesome project. It will surely be considered as one of the most significant infrastructure projects ever undertaken by the wind industry.

“Dogger Bank demonstrates the sheer potential of offshore technology to turn our vast ocean and wind resources into green energy. It is a project that pushes the offshore engineering envelope – demonstrating how far this technology has evolved in the ten short years since the first major offshore wind farm was installed in North Hoyle just five miles from shore.”

Dogger Bank Creyke Beck will now enter a pre-construction phase before the final investment decision is made. It could create up to 4,750 new direct and indirect full time equivalent jobs over the 25-year lifespan of the project.

Video: Dogger Bank 3D simulation

edie staff

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