The Rampion wind farm will be constructed by E.ON which was granted exclusive rights to develop the site by the Crown Estate, which owns the sea bed. In addition to up to 175 wind turbines, the facility will incorporate inter-array cabling, two offshore substations and offshore export cabling. There will also be an onshore substation and underground cabling to export the generated electricity to the national grid. Each turbine will have a generating capacity between 3MW and 7MW.
The 700MW wind farm will be located between 13 kilometres and 23 kilometres off the coast of Sussex covering an area of around 139 square kilometres. It is expected to generate more than 2,100 GWh of electricity per year, supplying around 450,000 homes, equivalent to more than two-thirds of homes in Sussex. The Port of Newhaven will act as the company’s base for operations and maintenance
“We’re driving investment in our energy security, and our plans have made us number one in the world for investment in offshore wind energy” said Energy Secretary Ed Davey. “This project is great news for Sussex, providing green jobs as well as driving business opportunities right across the country in a sector with a clear roadmap for long-term growth.”
Construction of the wind farm will begin in 2015. The announcement has been welcomed by environmental groups such as Friends of the Earth despite some concerns from local residents regarding views from the Sussex coastline.
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