The world’s largest offshore wind farm, Dogger Bank Wind Farm in British waters, has achieved first power and begun sending electricity to the UK national grid, the project’s developers said on Tuesday, welcoming the key milestone for the offshore wind farm as construction progresses.
The 3.6 gigawatt (GW) Dogger Bank wind farm is being built in three 1.2 GW phases, known as Dogger Bank A, B and C, in British waters 130 kilometers (81 miles) off the Yorkshire coast.
The project developers are UK-based SSE Renewables in a joint venture with Norwegian energy major Equinor and Vårgrønn, a joint venture between Eni Plenitude and HitecVision.
“A renewable energy mega-project like Dogger Bank represents an industrial wind hub in the heart of the North Sea, playing an important role in the UK’s offshore wind ambitions and supporting its net zero ambition,” said Equinor CEO Anders Opedal.
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said, “Offshore wind is vital to generating renewable, efficient energy that can power British homes from British seas.”
While the UK and developers have hailed the milestone in power generation at the world’s largest offshore wind farm, the current regulatory and business landscape for offshore wind is facing headwinds in the UK and around the world.
Last month’s UK renewable energy tender was a flop for the offshore wind industry – not a single offshore wind bid made it through to the auction, despite a record number of renewable energy projects being awarded government funding.