Abu Dhabi clean energy company Masdar and ScottishPower have completed a major construction stage at a £4 billion ($5.42 billion) offshore wind farm project off the English coast, which is set to be one of the largest in the world.
It is intended to generate 1.4 gigawatts of clean power, boost energy security and support UK economic growth once it becomes fully operational by the end of the year.
It will deliver enough power for more than one million British homes.
The 95 foundations – each 20 metres high, eight metres wide and weighing more than 400 tonnes – have been installed at East Anglia Three, 69 kilometres off the Suffolk coast.
The monopiles that accompany them, weighing 1,200-1,800 tonnes, standing 67-84 metres and with a diameter of up to 10.6m, are the largest to be installed from a jack-up vessel, a type of floating barge, in Europe. Turbine installation has also started.
Husain Al Meer, executive director of global offshore wind and UK at Masdar, said the completion of the foundation installation was a “significant milestone and a remarkable engineering achievement”.
He said: “East Anglia Three is Masdar’s first 50:50 offshore wind joint venture in the UK and forms an important part of our long-term commitment to the UK offshore wind industry. With electricity demand accelerating, offshore wind will be essential to delivering affordable, home-grown power at scale.”
He said it would help to meet “rising demand and strengthen the UK’s energy security”.
Charlie Jordan, ScottishPower Renewables chief executive, said: “You only have to look at the numbers – more than 200,000 tonnes of steel anchored spot on into a seabed area the size of almost 43,000 football pitches – to get a sense of what we’ve achieved so far. It’s mind-blowing.”
ScottishPower is a subsidiary of Spanish utility giant Iberdrola.
East Anglia Three is the second project to be developed as part of Masdar and Iberdrola’s €15 billion ($17.39 billion) strategic partnership.
The Masdar development comes at a delicate time for the UK government as it tries to grow its renewable-energy sector and become less reliant on fossil fuels.
However, there is pressure – most notably from US President Donald Trump – for Britain to grant new licences for drilling in the North Sea.
Reports on Monday suggested Prime Minister Andy Burnham was leaning towards approving the Jackdaw gasfield to try to increase UK energy supplies. A consultation ended last week.
The government is expected to reject a second oil and gasfield in the North Sea, known as Rosebank.
Approving further fossil-fuel production, particularly during a summer of heatwaves which have been linked to climate change, would draw criticism from environmental groups.
