The agreement was signed on the sidelines of the UN’s climate change conference COP28, in the UAE. The £11billion joint investment will provide a huge boost to the UK economy and demonstrates the UAE’s long-term commitment to supporting net-zero goals in Britain and around the world.
The mega-facility is expected to generate enough energy to power 3 million typical UK homes. The projects are predicted to create 2,000 jobs during construction and more than 1,000 direct and indirect jobs during their operational phase.
Masdar Chief Executive Officer, Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, and the Chief Executive Officer of RWE, Dr Markus Krebber, signed the agreement at COP28 in Expo City Dubai, on December 1.
Located over 100 kilometers off the northeastern coast of England, the DBS offshore wind farms will be split across two sites, the DBS East Array, and the DBS West Array. Each site will have the capacity for 1.5GW and span 500 square kilometers. Masdar will acquire a 49% stake in the landmark renewables project while RWE, with a 51% share, will remain in charge of development, construction, and operation throughout the life cycle of the projects.
The construction phase could start as early as end 2025 and the first 800MW of electricity is planned to come online in 2029. The DBS projects are expected to be fully commissioned by end of 2031.
Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, Chairman of Masdar and COP28 President, said, “As one of the world’s largest offshore wind farms, the Dogger Bank South project will make a huge impact on reducing emissions while supplying millions of UK families and businesses with clean, affordable and secure energy.
"The world needs to triple renewable energy capacity and double energy efficiency by 2030 if we are to keep the Paris Agreement goal of limiting temperature rises to 1.5 degrees within reach.
"At COP28, as we strive to form a unified plan to deliver the urgent course correction the planet needs, projects such as DBS show how nations, companies and communities can join forces to deliver powerful solutions.”
Masdar’s Chief Executive Officer, Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, said, “Masdar is very proud to be partnering with RWE to develop one of the world’s largest offshore wind farms. We are delighted to have come onboard at the early stages of this pioneering project, enabling us to leverage our shared passion and expertise in renewables.”
The deal demonstrates Masdar’s long-standing commitment to advancing offshore wind projects in the UK and Europe. A decade ago, Masdar, RWE and its partners launched the 630MW London Array wind farm, the world’s largest at the time. Today’s investment in the 3GW DBS projects - almost five times as big as London Array - shows Masdar’s steadfast expansion into the exciting offshore wind sector.
Markus Krebber, CEO RWE AG, said, “We’re delighted to welcome Masdar onboard as our partner and co-investor in the delivery of our Dogger Bank South projects which, at 3GW in size, make up RWE’s largest offshore wind development in the UK. With Masdar, we have a strong and renowned partner at our side who shares our ambition to further drive the growth of offshore wind energy. In combination with RWE's many years of experience in the development, construction, and operation of offshore wind farms, we are in an excellent position to strongly support the decarbonization of the UK.”
Offshore wind energy could generate 380GW by 2030, provided investment is increased and permitting protocols are accelerated, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency. With the UK and Europe setting ambitious legally binding net-zero goals, Masdar will continue to harness opportunities to develop the region’s burgeoning wind energy sector.
