Through its subsidiary, ScottishPower Renewables, Iberdrola Renovables and the world’s leader in offshore wind farm development, Vattenfall, have set up a 50/50 joint venture to develop the East Anglia Array, off the coast of South East England. The preliminary permits required for the zone, which is part of Round 3 of the UK government’s Crown Estate offshore wind farm programme, could be obtained in 2012 and phased construction could start in 2015.
According to Ignacio Galán, this important project will strengthen the company’s leading position in the wind energy sector and cement its presence in the strategic UK market. “We are delighted to be working with Vattenfall on what will be one of the largest wind farms in the world. The development of East Anglia Array will doubtlessly be a great engineering challenge but, as the UK’s leading onshore wind power company, the experience we have gained over the last 15 years will help us succeed in this far-reaching project,” he said during the Round 3 presentation in London last week.
Over the past 12 months, both companies have worked with the Crown Estate in assessing the zone. Studies have revealed the significant energy potential of the site, the excellent conditions of local ports and first-class grid connections. The future East Anglia Array offshore site will be one of nine new zones included in the Crown Estate’s third round of wind power licences. In all, up to 32,000 MW of offshore wind capacity is being awarded in Round 3, creating thousands of jobs and significantly cutting carbon emissions.
A team of specialists from the joint venture has already begun to assess the engineering challenges of the zone and possible environmental effects. The partners intend to work with local companies and boost employment in the area.
The Chairman and CEO of Vattenfall, Lars G. Josefsson, commented that “Vattenfall is delighted to be working with ScottishPower Renewables and we are excited about the prospect of using our wide and varied offshore wind experience gained building schemes across Europe by developing a wind farm off the East Anglia coast”.
To date, Iberdrola Renovables and Vattenfall of Sweden have obtained the rights to develop up to 7,200 MW of offshore capacity in the North Sea.
ScottishPower Renewables is working on several offshore wind power projects in the UK, with a total capacity of 1,700 MW, including the 500 MW West of Duddon Sands project. The company is now the leading developer and generator of onshore wind energy in the country and operates the largest wind farm in Europe, Whitelee in Scotland, completed in May 2009.
For additional information:
