Thanet Offshore Wind Farm
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The Thanet Offshore Wind Farm project covers an area of 13.5 square miles (35 km2), with 500 metres (1,600 ft) between turbines and 800 metres (2,600 ft) between the rows. Average water depth is 20–25 metres (66–82 ft). Planning permission for the project was granted on 18 December 2006. According to Thanet Offshore Wind Ltd, it was expected to be "the largest operational offshore wind farm in the World". The Thanet project has a total capacity of 300 MW which, by yearly average, is sufficient to supply approximately 240,000 homes. The project will thus make a significant contribution to the Government's national and regional renewable energy targets.
Two submarine power cables (by Italy-based Prysmian Group) run from an offshore substation within the wind farm connecting to an existing onshore substation in Richborough, Kent, connecting to a world-first two transformers. The offshore substation steps up the turbine voltage of 33 kV to 132 kV for the grid. Maintenance of the turbines is carried out by Vestas, while a separate maintenance agreement with SLP Energy covers the turbines foundations. Turbines are installed by the Danish offshore wind farm services provider A2SEA. The TIV Resolution carried and installed the turbines.
Financial structure
The Thanet Offshore Wind Farm scheme is project financed. Thanet Offshore Wind Ltd (TOW), the project company was owned by hedge fund Christofferson, Robb & Co. It was purchased from a group of sponsors led by Warwick Energy Ltd. In August 2008 Christofferson, Robb & Co placed the project back on the market. On 10 November 2008, Vattenfall, a Swedish energy company, acquired TOW.
Current status
The development was due to be in place by 2008. Vestas were chosen as the preferred turbine supplier in July 2006, and SLP were chosen as preferred supplier for the foundations in September 2006. The project was delayed by a number of issues including problems with Vestas who temporarily withdrew their V90 offshore model from the market in 2007 following gearbox problems. The V90-3 was re-released for sales starting from May 2008.
Vattenfall acquired the project in November 2008. On 28 June 2010, they reported that all turbines had been installed for commissioning due by the end of 2010. The wind farm was completed in September 2010.
Criticism
Since turbine construction makes up the majority of the project cost and the UK has no capacity, much of the work was contracted to foreign companies, resulting in only 20% of the investment going to British firms. There have been calls for the creation of a domestic wind industry.[22]
It was expected that the project would create "hundreds of new jobs", with 90 people employed directly and 200 employed indirectly as a result of extra trade. However, only 21 permanent positions have been created.
An article by climate change sceptic Christopher Booker estimates that due to the wind being intermittent, Thanet Wind Farm will only produce 75MW on average. The owners will receive a subsidy of £60M per year on top of the £30-40M cost of the electricity due to Renewables Obligation Certificates, and based on the estimated working life of the turbines of 20 years, the total subsidy will come to £1.2 billion. Since there are only 21 permanent green jobs, the subsidy per job comes to around £3M. However, Booker's capacity estimate is lower than Vattenfall's estimate of 35-40% capacity (105-120 MW) and the working life figure is also lower than other estimates of 40 years.
Extension
In June 2010, The Crown Estate announced that Thanet wind farm could be extended to produce an additional 147MW. However in October 2010, Vattenfall stated that it would not proceed.| Thanet Offshore Wind Farm | |
|---|---|
| Country | England, United Kingdom |
| Locale | 7 miles (11 km) off the coast of Thanet district, Kent |
| Status | Operational |
| Commission date | 23 September 2010 |
| Operator(s) | Vattenfall |
| Turbine information | |
| Turbines | 100 x Vestas V90-3MW |
| Manufacturer(s) | Vestas Wind Systems |
| Wind farm information | |
| Type | Offshore |
| Power generation information | |
| Installed capacity | 300 MW |
