U.K. Approves 2 Gigawatts of Offshore Wind

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--The United Kingdom's Crown Estate (London) has given the green light to another 2 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind capacity.

The Estate, which manages most of the U.K. seabed, announced that it has approved extensions to a group of Round 1 and Round 2 offshore projects that will result in enough electricity to supply about 1.4 million homes. Three Round 1 and Round 2 offshore windfarm operators have been selected to extend five sites, creating an additional 1.7 GW. In addition, a further 340 megawatts (MW) has been offered to increase capacity within the current Round 1 and 2 site areas for two additional projects. The Crown Estate said that these awards will help provide a stable flow of construction projects to the offshore wind supply chain in advance of Round 3.

Click on image at right for details of the five sites that will be extended.

In January this year, the Crown Estate announced the winners of the country's Round 3 offshore windfarm contracts, which are worth up to £100 billion ($148.5 billion) and which will add more than 25 GW of generation capacity by 2020. For related news, see January 11, 2010, article - Winners of U.K. Offshore Wind Jackpot Revealed.

"I am delighted that we have today announced a further 2 GW for round 1 and 2 extensions," said Rob Hastings, the Crown Estate's director of the marine estate. "This 2 GW has been driven by developers' appetite and will increase the total potential 2020 installed capacity to 48 GW. It is another positive step in the maturing of the offshore wind industry and will significantly support the growth of the supply chain, as it adds further to the pipeline of construction projects."

Construction of the extensions will commence in 2014, subject to consent, with completion of all projects by the end of 2016, in advance of Round 3 construction.

Maria McCaffery, the chief executive of RenewableUK (London), said: "Today's announcement gives definitive and positive evidence of the environmental and commercial viability of existing offshore projects. The site extensions come as a direct consequence of the U.K.'s world-beating offshore windfarms, showing that, after a successful start, they have further potential for growth."

Scottish and Southern Energy plc (OTC:SSEZY) (SSE) (Perth, Scotland) and RWE npower Renewables (Swindon, England), which received permission for a 504-MW extension at the Galloper Windfarm, near the Greater Gabbard windfarm, were happy with the Crown Estate's decision.

Paul Dowling, the chief executive of SSE Renewables, SSE's renewable energy development division, said: "Harnessing the power of offshore wind will enable the U.K. to generate significant amounts of clean energy from a totally renewable source. It therefore meets the country's energy security and climate change objectives. SSE is committed to becoming a major participant in the offshore wind market, and our current projects and success in securing development rights from The Crown Estate underline this. Galloper windfarm is an excellent addition to our portfolio of renewable energy development opportunities."

IIR's Renewable Energy Database provides extensive coverage on the Wind Energy, Geothermal, Hydroelectric, Landfill Gas-to-Energy and Utility-Scale Solar power plants throughout North America, and is now expanding coverage across the world.

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