DONG Energy secures permission for offshore wind farm
DONG Energy has secured permission from the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change for the development of the 660 MW Walney Extension offshore wind farm, located off Walney Island in the Irish Sea.
The Development Consent Order (DCO) was approved by the Rt.Hon. Edward Davey MP at the recommendation of the Planning Inspectorate, and covers the entire project including the turbines, offshore and onshore substations, array cables and export cable. The maximum capacity for the project is 750 MW although the project has a grid connection of 660 MW.
The proposed offshore wind farm covers an area of up to 149 km2 and consists of wind turbines, foundations, inter array cables, offshore and onshore export cables within an 'export cable corridor' and offshore and onshore substations which will connect the project to the National Grid.
Walney Extension offshore wind farm is expected to be developed using 6 - 8 megawatt turbines. The project, which is located 19 kilometres from the nearest coastline, has high wind potential but also challenging ground conditions. The flexible consent that has been granted will allow DONG Energy to use the most efficient solutions for the wind farm, supporting the drive to reduce the cost of electricity.
Benj Sykes, DONG Energy's Vice President of UK Wind Power, said:
Walney Extension is expected to have generation capacity of up to 660 megawatts, with the potential to power up to half a million homes, and this decision to grant development consent now clears the way for the company to make a final investment decision on the project.With consent also granted to the Burbo Bank Extension project recently, this really underlines our commitment to investing in the UK and helping us move towards a low carbon economy.
Walney Extension was one of three DONG Energy projects awarded a FID-enabling Contract for Difference in April 2014.
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