Consent has been awarded for what will be the largest offshore wind farm in the world, offshore the UK.
The Dogger Bank Creyke Beck development, to be operated by the Forewind consortium, is to be created out of two wind 1.2GW farms, each with 200 wind turbines, over 500sq km in the Dogger Bank area of the North Sea, 131km from the UK's coastline.
The farms will connect into the existing Creyke Beck substation near Cottingham, in the East Riding of Yorkshire.
When constructed, Dogger Bank Creyke Beck is expected to be one of UK’s largest power generators, second only to the 3.9GW Drax coal-fired station in North Yorkshire and is the same size as the 2.4GW Longannet coal-fired station in Fife.
In total it will be capable of generating 8 terrawatt hours (TWh) of green energy per annum, equal to the amount used annually by about 1.8 million British homes.
Consent was approved after more than four years of assessments, stakeholder consultation and planning by Forewind, which is owned equally by the four international energy companies – RWE, SSE, Statkraft and Statoil.
General Manager, Tarald Gjerde said the organization and its four owners are thrilled that the first consent for the Dogger Bank Zone has been granted, taking the flagship development a step closer to supplying the UK with such a significant amount of renewable energy, and to realizing the many potential economic opportunities, particularly on the east coast.
“Achieving consent for what is currently the world’s largest offshore wind project in development is a major achievement for Forewind and will help confirm the UK’s position as the world leader in the industry,” Mr Gjerde said. “It is testament to the stellar efforts made by the outstanding Forewind team, and to the invaluable support given by a wide range of expert consultants and specialist suppliers."
Dogger Bank Creyke Beck is part of the Dogger Bank Zone, the largest of the Round 3 zones but one of the shallowest, with high wind speeds and seabed conditions suited to offshore wind development.
The rights for the Dogger Bank Zone were awarded to Forewind by The Crown Estate, manager of the UK seabed.
Head of Offshore Wind for The Crown Estate, Huub den Rooijen said that: “Today’s announcement for Dogger Bank Creyke Beck is the largest planning consent for an offshore wind development globally. The sheer scale of this project creates the potential for it to be built at significantly lower costs, presenting a powerful opportunity for economic growth and jobs. We look forward to working with the Forewind consortium and the wider offshore wind industry to ensure the UK remains the most attractive country to invest into the long term.”
As part of the consent process a final six-week judicial review period is now underway.
A decision on Forewind’s second development consent order application, for Dogger Bank Teesside A&B, is anticipated around August this year.
The development consent for Dogger Bank Creyke Beck authorizes:
Up to 400 wind turbines with fixed foundations
Two offshore high voltage direct current (HVDC) converter platforms with fixed foundations
Up to eight offshore collector platforms with fixed foundations
Up to four offshore accommodation or helicopter platforms with fixed foundations
Up to 10 offshore meteorological monitoring stations with fixed foundations
Subsea cables between the elements of offshore infrastructure
Offshore export cables carrying electricity from the offshore HVDC converter platforms to the Holderness coast
Subscribe
