Press Release

GREEN LIGHT FOR THAMES ESTUARY OFFSHORE WINDFARMS WELCOMED

18 December 2006

The Crown Estate welcomes the green light given today by the Government for two major offshore windfarms to be built in the Thames Estuary.

The London Array and Thanet schemes together total 1.3GW of green electricity, enough to power a third of London’s three million households when fully operational and saving nearly 2.6 million tonnes of CO₂ a year. They will make a significant contribution to the Government’s ambition – set out in the Energy Review – to deliver a five-fold increase in the UK’s renewable energy resource by 2020.

In its role as landlord of the seabed out to the 12 mile territorial limit, The Crown Estate, along with the DTI, invited developers to register for round two in March 2003 to bid for sites in the three strategic areas; the Thames Estuary, the Greater Wash and the North West coast.

The London Array project is likely to cost about £1.5bn and will consist of over 300 turbines (each capable of generating between 3-7MW), five offshore sub-stations and four meteorological masts. They will rise from the sea 20km off the Kent and Essex coasts and will occupy an area 232 sq. km in size stretching between Margate and Clacton.

The £500 million Thanet windfarm will be located approximately 11km (7 miles) from North Foreland on the Kent coast and its 100 turbines will occupy an area of around 35 sq. km. The project, led by developer Warwick Energy, is being fast-tracked for delivery in 2008 and expects to provide electricity for around 240,000 homes.

Shell, a partner in London Array said: "The London Array offshore windfarm will make a crucial contribution to the UK's renewable energy targets. We're delighted to have received the DTI's consents today. We also welcome the Government's commitment, made during the recent Energy Review, to adapt the Renewables Obligation. This will enable the commercialisation of technologies such as offshore wind that can deliver the larger scale projects required for emissions targets to be met. Moreover, the Government's decision to reform the planning system for major energy infrastructure projects will help ensure a balance is struck between the national interest and local concerns.”

Commenting on the news, Rob Hastings, Director of the Marine Estate at The Crown Estate said: “The Crown Estate are delighted by the news that the first of the second round windfarm projects have been given consents to proceed. We are encouraged by developer's determination to build these windfarms and we look forward to another 1,300MW of offshore wind generation capacity coming online. This will bring the total UK capacity to 2,000MW which is either already generating or committed for construction, representing nearly 2% of the UK's electricity demand and making the UK the world leader in offshore wind energy. While it has taken nearly ten years to get to this point, with the continued support of developers, suppliers and government, we now expect this to double over the next five years. Looking even further forward, The Crown Estate is committed to enabling at least 10% of the UK's electricity to come from the resources of its marine estate by 2020.”

Both projects consented today will also bring significant economic opportunities to the local communities and to UK businesses.

For a map indicating location and details of both the round one and two offshore schemes, please follow the link.