The Kentish Flats Wind Farm is an offshore wind power plant located off the coast of Kent, England on a large, flat and shallow plateau just outside the main Thames shipping lanes. The distance from the nearest wind turbine to Whitstable is 6.2 miles (10.0 km). The nearest turbine is 5.5 miles (8.9 km) away from Herne Bay. Construction was completed in August 2005, with commissioning and testing of all turbines completed by September 2005. The wind farm consists of 30 Vestas V90-3MW wind turbines with a total nameplate capacity of 90 MW. Turbines were installed by the Danish offshore wind farms services provider A2SEA.

Kentish Flats Offshore Wind Farm is operated by Vattenfall.

Kentish Flats Offshore Wind Farm
Country	England
Locale	North Sea South East England Kent
Status	operational
Commission date	2005
Owner(s)	Vattenfall
Power station information
Primary fuel	Wind
Generation units	30 x 30 Vestas V90-3MW
Power generation information
Installed capacity	90 MW

Race Bank Wind Farm is a proposed offshore wind farm to be located 27 km north of Blakeney Point off the coast of Norfolk, and 28 km east of Chapel St Leonards off the Lincolnshire coast in the North Sea, England. It is being developed by Centrica.^] The farm gets its name from a shallow bank or shoal off the north coast of Norfolk where water depths range from 4m to 22m. The farm will cover an area of approximately 75 sq km.

In 2004 Centrica was awarded a 50 year lease from The Crown Estate to develop a wind farm on Race Bank and another area nearby called Docking Shoal, as part of the second UK offshore wind farm tendering process known as "Round 2".

The Race Bank Wind Farm project includes constructing the wind turbines and their foundations, building offshore substations, installing power cables both undersea and onshore, as well as an extension to the existing onshore Electrical substation to transform the voltage so that it is suitable for connection into the UK National Grid. This work is estimated to take between 3 and 4 years.

The wind farm planning consent was submitted in January 2009 and is awaiting approval. The application is for between 88 and 206 turbines with a nameplate capacity of up to 620 MW. The type and quantity of turbine will be determined during the detailed design phase which will occur after consent is granted.

Centrica is working with AMEC and the RES Group on this project.

Race Bank Wind Farm
Country	England, United Kingdom
Locale	27km off the coast of north Norfolk
Status	Awaiting consent
Developer(s)	Centrica
Turbine information
Turbines	88 to 206
Power generation information
Maximum capacity	up to 620 MW

Teesside Offshore Wind Farm or Redcar Wind Farm is a consented offshore wind power plant to be constructed just to the east of the mouth of the River Tees and 1.5km north of Redcar off the Teesside coast, in the North Sea, England. It is being developed by EDF Energy Renewables, a company jointly owned by EDF Energy and EDF Energies Nouvelles. The farm will stand in water of depths up to 20m and will cover an area of approximately 10 sq km.

In 2004 EDF was awarded a 20 year lease from The Crown Estate to develop a wind farm at Teeside part of the first UK offshore wind farm tendering process known as "Round 1".

The Teesside Offshore Wind Farm project includes constructing the wind turbines and their foundations, installing 2 power cables linking the turbines to a new electrical substation required for connection into the UK National Grid at Tod Point, near the Teesside Steelworks. Foundations will be 5.5m diameter monopoles drilled or driven about 35m into the seabed. Electrical cables will carry 33kV.

Planning consent was authorised in September 2007. The consent is for 27 turbines with a nameplate capacity of 62 MW.

Planning

A number of regulatory consents are required for the construction and the operation of Teesside Offshore wind farm. The key consents applied for are as follows:

• Consent under Section 36 of the Electricity Act (1989) for the electricity generating facility.

• Consent under Section 34 of the Coast Protection Act (1949) for construction on or under the seabed below MHWS.

• Licence under the Section 5 of the Food and Environment Protection Act (1985) for the placement and deposit of construction materials in the sea below MHWS.

• A PD Teesport Works License to construct on under or over tidal waters and tidal lands below the level of high water in the harbour.

• Planning permission under Section 57 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 for the onshore underground electricity cables and the substation.

Teesside Offshore Wind Farm
Country	England, United Kingdom
Locale	1.5km north of Redcar Teesside
Status	Under construction
Developer(s)	EDF Energy
Turbine information
Turbines	27
Model(s)	2.3 MW
Power generation information
Installed capacity	62 MW
Maximum capacity	90 MW

The Scroby Sands Offshore Wind Farm is a wind power plant located on the Scroby Sands sandbank in the North Sea, 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) off the coast of Great Yarmouth in eastern England, United Kingdom. It was commissioned in March 2004 by Powergen Renewables Offshore, a division of E.ON UK. It is expected to produce up to a maximum of 60 megawatts of power, enough for supply of 41,000 households.

The Scroby Sands Offshore Wind Farm consist of 30 wind turbines, each with three 40-metre (130 ft) blades rotating around a centre-point some 60 metres (200 ft) above the mean sea level on hollow 4.5 metres (14.8 ft) diameter steel masts, in from 13-to-20-metre (43 to 66 ft) depth of water. The masts are piled up to 30 metres (98 ft) into the sea bed, to provide stability on a substrate of shifting sands.

The wind turbines were designed and manufactured by a Danish firm, Vestas. Each turbine has a capacity of 2 megawatts. Turbines were installed by the Danish offshore wind farms services provider A2SEA.

The wind farm has an information centre serving around 35,000 visitors per year, and has become a local attraction.

Scroby Sands Offshore Wind Farm
Country	United Kingdom, England
Locale	Norfolk, Great Yarmouth
Status	Operational
Commission date	2004
Owner(s)	E.ON UK
Power station information
Primary fuel	Wind
Generation units	30
Power generation information
Installed capacity	60 MW

North Hoyle Wind Farm is Wales' first offshore wind farm, and the UK's first major offshore renewable power plant project. Situated in Liverpool Bay, it commenced operation in 2003.

The first of the UK's Round 1 offshore wind farms, North Hoyle covers an area of 10 km², and is located approximately 7.5 kilometres (4.7 mi) off the coast of North Wales, between the towns of Rhyl and Prestatyn. The Round 1 projects were intended to act as testbeds; building the UK's understanding of offshore wind, whilst in total also providing well over 1000 MW of green generating capacity for the UK. All of the Round 1 offshore wind farms were limited to a maximum area of 10 square kilometres (3.9 sq mi), and no more than 30 wind turbines.

The wind farm's 30 Vestas V80 Offshore wind turbines are each rated at 2 MW capacity, giving a maximum project output of 60 MW. At the time of installation this was the most powerful wind farm in the UK, producing sufficient electricity annually to power 50,000 homes.

Independent surveys carried out for the operators of North Hoyle have shown that the wind farm is very popular among local residents. An opinion poll carried out in 2003, after one year of operation, showed that 73% of people expressed support for the project and only 5% opposed it.

North Hoyle Wind Farm was developed, built and is operated by npower renewables (formerly National Wind Power); npower renewables also own the neighbouring Rhyl Flats and Gwynt y Môr Offshore Wind Farm.

North Hoyle Offshore Wind Farm
Country	Wales
Locale	Liverpool Bay, north east Wales
Commission date	2003
Operator(s)	RWE Npower
Power station information
Primary fuel	Wind
Generation units	30 Vestas 2MW turbines

Gwynt y Mor Offshore Wind farm is a proposed 576 MW offshore wind power plant located off the coast of North Wales. Planning consent for the project was granted on the 3rd of December 2008, and construction is expected to begin in 2011 with final commissioning in 2014.

The Gwynt y Mor Offshore Wind farm project has a value of 2 billion Euros, of which 1.2B goes to Siemens for turbines and electrical connections.

With 160 turbines of 3.6MW Siemens SWT-3.6-107, Gwynt y Môr will be Wales' largest wind farm. The expected output of 1,950 GWh per year is capable of powering around 400,000 homes, or 40% of the homes in Wales, and preventing the release of about 1.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year.

As with all offshore wind farms in the UK, the seabed at Gwynt y Môr is owned by the Crown Estates, which has agreed to lease the land to npower renewables. The wind farm will be located in close proximity to the existing North Hoyle and Rhyl Flats offshore wind farms. All of these projects are wholly or partly owned by RWE npower renewables, a subsidiary of German company RWE. In the case of Gwynt y Môr, RWE holds 60%, Stadtwerke München holds 30%, and Siemens holds 10%.

Gwynt y Môr Offshore Wind Farm
Locale	18km off the coast of North Wales, UK
Status	proposed
Commission date	2014 (expected)
Owner(s)	RWE Npower Stadtwerke München Siemens
Power station information
Primary fuel	Wind
Generation units	160 Siemens 3.6 MW turbines
Power generation information
Maximum capacity	576 MW

Greater Gabbard Offshore Wind Farm is a 500 MW wind power plant under construction on sandbanks 23 kilometres (14 mi) off the coast of Suffolk in England at a cost between £650 million to £1.5 billion. Onshore construction activities commenced in early July 2008 at Sizewell and Siemens SWT3.6-107 turbines are projected to be delivered over 2009 and 2010. It is the world's largest offshore windfarm under construction.

The Greater Gabbard Offshore Wind Farm project was originally developed by Greater Gabbard Offshore Winds Limited (GGOWL) which was a joint venture between Airtricity and Fluor. Airtricity was subsequently bought by Scottish and Southern Energy who have bought out Fluor's 50% stake for £40m which is expected to cost £1.3b. Fluor are now contracted to design, supply, installation and commissioning of the balance of the plant. Scottish and Southern sold a 50% stake to RWE, the owners of Npower (UK), in November 2008 for £308m.

The project was given the go-ahead in May 2008.

In October 2009 Seajacks Ltd delivered its 7,000 tonne Leviathan vessel to Fluor Ltd which will sailed to Harwich to prepare the hook-up and commissioning of an in-field substation and then installation of the turbines. The first foundations were installed in autumn 2009 with the first of a total of 140 turbines to be installed in the spring 2010. Construction is expected to be completed in 2012.

At April 2011, 108 turbines were installed.

The first MWh of generation was achieved on 29 December 2010.

An extension of the project, called Galloper, may be agreed during 2012.

Incidents

On 12 November 2009, a man was killed and a woman injured after a chain broke and the two people were hit with pieces of the chain. Police responded to the incident, and an investigation was launched. The casualties were on board a tugboat, the Typhoon.

A man died and another suffered serious injuries following an accident at Parkeston Quay, Harwich. Per Terp, a 42-year-old Siemens engineer from Norresundby, Denmark, died in the incident. A 43-year-old German national was taken to Addenbrooke’s Hospital. The incident happened on Friday, May 21 at about 7.50 am while loading a wind turbine blade on the vessel Seajack.

Specification

• Number of turbines: up to 140
• Power rating: 500 MW
• Load factor: 'greater than 40%'
• Estimated output: 1.9 TWh per year
• Cost: £1512 million^[2] (£650 million not counting grid connection)
• Location: offshore, 23 kilometres (14 mi) from Sizewell on the Inner Gabbard and The Galloper sandbanks

Greater Gabbard Wind Farm
Country	England
Locale	Inner Gabbard and The Galloper banks North Sea Suffolk Coast
Status	Under construction
Commission date	2012 (expected)
Owner(s)	Scottish and Southern RWE Npower Renewables
Turbine information
Turbines	140
Manufacturer(s)	Siemens Wind Power
Model(s)	Siemens 3.6 MW turbines
Wind farm information
Distance from shore	23 km (14 mi)
Power generation information
Maximum capacity	500 MW

West Duddon Offshore Wind Farm or West of Duddon Sands wind farm (WoDS) is a proposed offshore wind farm to be located 14km south west of Walney Island off the coast of Cumbria, in the Irish Sea, England. It is being developed by Morecombe Wind Ltd, a partnership between Scottish Power, Dong Energy and Eurus Energy. The farm gets its name from a large sand bank uncovered at low water in the mouth of the estuary of the River Duddon to the north of the Barrow-in-Furness Peninsula. The farm is somewhat to the south west of the Sands and will cover an area of approximately 66 sq km.

In 2004 Morecombe Wind was awarded a 50 year lease from The Crown Estate to develop a wind farm at West Duddon as part of the second UK offshore wind farm tendering process known as "Round 2".

The West Duddon Offshore Wind Farm project includes constructing the wind turbines and their foundations, building offshore substations, installing power cables both undersea and onshore, as well as an extension to the existing onshore Electrical substation to house the equipment needed for connection into the UK National Grid. This work is estimated to take about 2 years.

The West Duddon Offshore Wind Farm planning application was filed in April 2006 and consent was granted in September 2008. The application was for between 83 and 139 turbines with a nameplate capacity of 500 MW. However permission was granted for only 108 turbines due to geological siting issues. This will provide up to 389 MW of power.

West Duddon Offshore Wind Farm
Country	England, United Kingdom
Locale	14km south west of Walney Island Cumbria
Status	Consent granted September 2008
Developer(s)	Scottish Power, Dong Energy & Eurus Energy
Turbine information
Turbines	108
Model(s)	3.6MW
Power generation information
Installed capacity	389 MW approved
Maximum capacity	500 MW

Walney Offshore Wind Farm is an offshore wind farm currently under construction 14km west of Walney Island off the coast of Cumbria, in the Irish Sea, England. It is being developed by Walney (UK) Offshore Windfarms Limited, a partnership between Dong Energy and Scottish and Southern Energy. The farm is immediately north west of the West Duddon wind farm and also to the west of Ormonde wind farm. The farm is in water depths ranging from 19m to 23m and will cover an area of approximately 73 sq km.

In 2004 Dong Energy was awarded a 50 year lease from The Crown Estate to develop a wind farm off Walney Island, as part of the second UK offshore wind farm tendering process known as "Round 2". The Walney Offshore Wind Farm will be constructed sequentially in two phases with overlapping installation activities to reduce the overall construction timeframe.

The Walney Offshore Wind Farm project involves constructing the wind turbines and their foundations, building two offshore substations and installing two undersea power cables, one for each phase, and two short onshore cables to connect to two existing onshore Electrical substations for connection into the UK National Grid. Phase 1 will connect to a substation at Heysham, phase 2 will connect to substation at Stanah, south of Fleetwood. Both undersea cables will pass close by the Barrow wind farm. All the construction work is expected to take less than 2 years, with both phases operational by the end of 2011.

Both phases will have 51 turbines giving a nameplate capacity of 367 MW.

Planning of Walney Offshore Wind Farm

The key planning consents obtained are the following:

• Consent under section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989 to construct and operate a windfarm. This will also cover the offshore cables and other infrastructure.

• FEPA License under section 5 of the Food and Environment Protection Act 1985, concerning the protection of marine ecosystems.

• Consent under section 34 of the Coast Protection Act 1949 in order to make provision for the safety of navigation in relation to the export cables.

• Planning permission under section 90 of the Town and County Planning Act 1990, sought as part of the section 36 application, for the onshore elements of the works (“Deemed planning permission”).

• Extinguishment of public rights of navigation will be requested under the Energy Act 2004 for the areas of seabed directly covered by the offshore structures.

Walney Wind Farm
Country	England, United Kingdom
Locale	14km west of Walney Island off the coast of Cumbria
Status	Under construction
Construction began	March 2010
Developer(s)	Dong Energy and SSE
Turbine information
Turbines	102
Manufacturer(s)	Siemens
Model(s)	SWT-3.6
Rotor diameter	107m
Power generation information
Maximum capacity	367 MW

Sheringham Shoal Wind Farm is an offshore wind farm in the United Kingdom to be completed in 2011. The nearest turbine will be a minimum distance of approximately 9 nautical miles (17 km) to the shore. The turbines will be supported by foundations secured to the sea bed. The wind farm will consist of 88 Siemens 3.6 MW wind turbines (model SWT-3.6-107), giving a total combined nameplate capacity of 317 MW.^[1] The wind farm will have a total area of approximately 14 sq. miles (35 km²).^[4] The wind farm will generate about 1.1 TWh per year, providing enough power for approximately 220,000 average UK homes, more than twice the equivalent electricity required to supply the whole of the North Norfolk coast. The wind farm will avoid about 500,000 tonnes per year of carbon dioxide emissions compared to electricity generation from fossil fuels.

The United Kingdom has the largest shallow-water offshore wind resource in the world, and it has been estimated that the UK could provide over 33% of the total European potential for offshore wind energy. This is enough to power the country nearly three times over. Britain’s relatively shallow waters and strong winds extend far into the North Sea. The development of the Sheringham Shoal Offshore Wind Farm is another step towards tapping this inexhaustible and natural resource.

The expected cost of the project is 10 billion Norwegian kroner.

The schedule

All necessary planning permissions have now been received by the project so it is officially in the construction phase. Onshore these include planning permissions from Broadland and North Norfolk District Councils and grid agreements with EdFE and NGT. Offshore these include the Agreement for Lease with The Crown Estate, Section 36 Consent from BERR and the Marine and Fisheries Agency license. Onshore work began in 2009 while offshore installation is scheduled to start in early 2010 with the installation of 90 foundations - 88 for the turbines and two for the offshore substations. Turbine installation will be during the 1st quarter of 2011 and the project is scheduled for completion at the end of 2011.

Export cable

In April 2008, cable company Nexans was awarded the cable supply contract by Statoil. The contract scope includes engineering, procurement and construction of two 22 km, 145 kilovolt (kV) XLPE submarine export cables, and a spare cable with associated equipment. An optical fibre cable will also be included.

Sheringham Shoal Wind Farm Installation

The first foundations have been installed in 2010, consisting of 61m steel tubes weighing 531 tons - big enough that a British double-decker bus could drive inside the tube. The tube is towed to the site on a barge. The sea crane Svanen (contracted by MTHøjgaard and built to construct the Great Belt fixed link) raises one end of the tube, while the other end on the barge is fixed to a 135 ton giant roller skate with hydraulic motors compensating for wave oscillations which previously hampered operations. During the execution of the work the contract with MTHøjgaard was terminated by Statoil ASA and Statkraft AS. Seaway Heavy Lifting took over the contract and will install the remaining 66 monopile foundations and 71 transition pieces. Seaway Heavy Lifting will use their newbuild heavy lift vessel Oleg Strashnov for the job. The Oleg Strashnov will also install the two offshore substations at Sheringham Shoal. The new installation contracts will secure planned completion of the Sheringham Shoal project for full operation in early 2012.

Sheringham Shoal Wind Farm
Country	England, United Lingdom
Locale	Sheringham, North Norfolk, East of England
Status	Under construction
Commission date	2011 (expected)
Owner(s)	Statoil Statkraft
Turbine information
Turbines	88 x Siemens 3.6 MW
Manufacturer(s)	Siemens Wind Power
Wind farm information
Type	Offshore
Distance from shore	9 nautical miles (17 km)
Power generation information
Installed capacity	317 MW
Annual generation	1.1 TWh