Giant Isle of Wight Offshore Windfarm Advances

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland) -- French energy major, Electricite de France S.A. (EPA:EDF) (EDF) (Paris, France), has joined forces with Eneco (Rotterdam, Netherlands) to develop a giant U.K. offshore windfarm off the Isle of Wight.

EDF and Eneco have formed a 50:50 joint venture to develop the Navitus Bay Offshore Wind Project, which will have a generating capacity ranging from 900 megawatts (MW) to 1,200 MW. The windfarm will be located west of the Isle of Wight, off the south coast of England.

EDF kicked off construction of its first U.K. offshore windfarm, the 62 MW Redcar Teeside project located off the north east coast, in February. The windfarm is expected to start generating enough power for around 40,000 homes before the end of the year. For additional information see February 14, 2012, article -EDF's First Offshore Windfarm Takes Shape in U.K..

The Navitus project was awarded to Eneco in 2010 by The Crown Estate, which manages the U.K.'s seabed, and it forms part of the Round 3 series of offshore contracts which aim to add up to 25,000 MW of electricity to the grid by 2020. The contracts are valued at around €122 billion ($162 billion). For additional information see January 11, 2010, article - Winners of U.K. Offshore Wind Jackpot Revealed.

The proposed development will located on a sea area of 76 square miles and has the potential to generate enough electricity for between 615,000 and 820,000 homes. It will also offset approximately 1.2 million tonnes of CO2 annually. A planning application will be lodged at the end of next year with the new National Planning Inspectorate.

"The arrival of one of Europe's biggest utility companies (EDF) into the Round 3 programme provides another boost for the offshore wind industry, bringing new expertise and skills into the U.K. market to help drive forward the world's largest offshore wind programme," explained Huub den Rooijen, Head of Offshore Wind, The Crown Estate.

EDF is already celebrating recent success in the French offshore wind market, which is just getting off the ground. Last month, a consortium led by the company's renewable energy division, EDF Energies Nouvelles (EDF EN), dominated the first series of offshore windfarm tenders, securing three of the four projects awarded by the French government. They include the Fecamp, Courseulles-sur-Mer and Saint-Nazaire projects. For additional information see April 12, 2012, article - EDF Wins Majority of French Offshore Projects.

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