What is offshore wind energy?
Wind energy is a renewable energy source powered by wind gusts in the ocean off the coast. The wind turns the blades of a wind turbine, which spin a generator that converts the kinetic energy into electricity. The electricity produced is then transmitted back onshore via transmission lines and can end up in houses like yours.
What is an offshore wind farm?
An offshore wind farm is a group of offshore wind turbines. These wind turbines are in one common location to harvest wind power and convert it to electricity. The farms are owned and operated by wind energy companies in the offshore wind industry.
Tell me the reason for UK offshore wind energy boom
The UK is perfectly positioned to generate wind power and is Europe’s busiest nation. Offshore wind has greater power and consistency than onshore winds and thus can produce a more significant amount of wind energy in the UK. However, the necessary technologies have been costly since the late 1990s. Since 2012, electricity costs from offshore wind power have fallen 63 percent, making offshore winds easier to develop in north-western Europe. Larger turbine designs could have partially explained this cost reduction and technologies developed, such as lithium battery manufacturing.
Offshore wind capacity in the UK
In 2022, the UK will have 4.5 GW of capacity from 9 offshore wind farms. The electricity produced comes from a total of 572 wind turbines. Most are fixed foundation projects, and the floating wind farms are smaller-scale demonstration projects.
List of UK offshore wind farms
There are many existing offshore wind farms in the UK. Below is a list of many of them with details on the number of wind turbines, installed capacity, and operator.
Hornsea Offshore Wind Farm
Hornsea is the world’s largest offshore wind farm, located in the North Sea about 75 miles off the coast of England and operated by Ørsted. Hornsea phase 1 has an installed capacity of approximately 1.2 GW. Hornsea has two more phases. Phase 2 will have an additional 1.4 GW, and Phases 3 and 4 will have about a 3 GW capacity combined. After all three phases, the total installed capacity will be up to 6 GW of renewable power. This project will have 670 wind turbines rated from 7 to 10 MW each.
Dogger Bank Wind Farm
Dogger Bank is off England’s Yorkshire coast. When completed, it will be one of the world’s largest offshore wind farms, with 3.6 GW of total installed capacity. Dogger Bank has 3 phases: A, B, and C. Each project will use 95 wind turbines rated at 13MW each. Dogger Bank Wind Farm is a joint venture of SSE Renewables (40%), Equinor (40%), and ENI Plenitude (20%). It is one of the largest sources of renewable energy in the UK.
Inch Cape Offshore Wind Farm
Inch Cape is a 50/50 joint venture between Red Rock Power and ESB and is off the east coast of Scotland. The project will have 72 wind turbines and a total installed capacity of 1 GW, making Inch Cape one of Scotland’s most significant renewable power sources.
Erebus Wind Farm
Erebus wind farm, named after the famous vessel, is a project to prove the viability of wind energy in the Celtic Sea. This project, owned by Blue Gem Wind, will only produce about 100 MW of renewable energy from 10 turbines. Erebus is a floating offshore wind farm essential to meeting the UK Government’s plans of net zero emissions by 2025.
East Anglia Offshore Wind Complex
The East Anglia Offshore project is a 4 phase project off the east coast of England’s the North Sea, with phase 1 already completed. The total project will be commissioned by 2027 and will have about 323 turbines. Phase 1 turbines are 7 MW each, and the other phases are 14 MW each. The final combined capacity is about 3.8 GW. East Anglia is a partnership between ScottishPower and Vattenfall.
Sofia Offshore Wind Farm
Sofia offshore wind farm is also located in the Dogger Bank off the east coast of England. This fixed foundation offshore wind project will have 100 wind turbines. Each turbine will be 14 MW, for a total installed capacity of 1.4 GW. Sofia is owned and operated by RWE.
Seagreen Offshore Wind Farm
Seagreen offshore wind farm will have a total installed capacity of 1.0 GW from 114 wind turbines. The project will be in operation by 2023 and will provide renewable energy for about 2/3 of all Scottish homes. Seagreen is a 51/49 partnership between Total and SSE Renewables. When complete, this will be the largest offshore wind farm in Scotland and the deepest offshore wind farm in the world.
Moray West Offshore Wind Farm
Moray West won development rights from The Crown Estate in 2016. This project will have 85 wind turbines for a combined installed capacity of 1.3 GW. The first power is planned for 2024. Moray West will provide clean and renewable energy to Scotland.
List of UK offshore wind energy companies.
- Ørsted
- SSE Renewables
- Equinor
- ENI Plenitude
- ESB
- Red Rock Power
- ScottishPower
- Vattenfall
- RWE