London Array welcomes latest government permissions

The consortium¹ developing London Array, one of the world’s largest offshore wind farms in the Thames estuary, has welcomed today’s announcement from the UK Government that electricity transmission works associated with the project can go ahead².



The 1,000MW London Array would consist of up to 341 wind turbines and be able to generate enough electricity to cater for the power needs of a quarter of London homes or every home in Kent and East Sussex. It would also avoid the emission of millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide over its life.

The project would be built in phases and when complete would generate electricity equivalent to almost 10% of the Government’s target for 10% of the UK’s electricity to come from renewable sources by 2010.

London Array received planning permission for the offshore works in December 2006 and the Government, in August this year, supported the Planning Inspector’s recommendation for permission to be given for the construction of an onshore substation.

Andrew Murfin, Project Director of London Array Limited, said: “This is great news and is another significant step towards the development of this flagship project for the UK.”

“As the Government looks to tackle the twin issues of security of supply and climate change, it is clear that renewable projects of the scale of London Array will become more and more important to the UK. Now that these important consents are in place, we are focused on the tendering necessary for the first phase of this project, the results of which will determine whether the project economics and schedule are acceptable. Timely enactment by the Government of their proposed changes to the Renewables Obligation legislation to promote offshore wind power is another key factor necessary for the success of this project.”


Notes to Editors

¹ = London Array consortium consists of E.ON UK, Shell WindEnergy Ltd and Dong Energy London Array Limited (previously CORE Ltd), a joint venture between Denmark’s DONG Energy A/S with UK partner Farm Energy Ltd.
² = Permission under Section 37 of the Electricity Act was given by BERR for transmission works, associated with the project, that will be carried out by National Grid.



* E.ON is one of the UK’s leading power and gas companies - generating and distributing electricity, and retailing power and gas - and is part of the E.ON group, the world’s largest investor-owned power and gas company. We employ around 18,000 people in the UK. Our retail business, branded Powergen, is a leading energy supplier in the UK, with around 8 million electricity and gas customer accounts. We are one of the UK’s largest renewable generation businesses, currently generating enough electricity to supply the needs of all the homes in a city the size of Manchester. The company has stakes in 21 wind farms across the country, is co-firing biomass at two of its power stations and has recently finished building the UK’s largest biomass power station in Lockerbie. The company has successfully completed the construction of the 60MW Scroby Sands offshore wind farm off the coast of Great Yarmouth and is also progressing further offshore developments in the Solway Firth and off the East Yorkshire coast.



* Shell WindEnergy is part of the Gas & Power business of Royal Dutch Shell plc. Shell WindEnergy focuses on the development, ownership, and operation of large-scale wind farms. As a leading Wind operator Shell WindEnergy is involved in projects across Europe and the United States with a total capacity of 843MW (Shell share 415MW).



* DONG Energy is one of the world’s leading developers and operators of offshore wind farms with experience from both the UK and offshore waters around Europe. The company pioneered the offshore wind industry in Denmark with projects constructed in the 1990s. In 2002 and 2003 DONG Energy constructed the world’s two largest offshore wind farms; Horns Rev and Nysted in Denmark. DONG Energy is involved in a number of Round 1 and Round 2 offshore wind projects in the UK. In 2006 the 90MW Barrow offshore wind project in the East Irish Sea went into operation and the 90MW Burbo Bank project in Liverpool Bay was inaugurated in October 2007. In 2008 construction works for the 108 MW Gunfleet Sands project in the Thames Estuary will kick off for expected completion by 2009.



* Farm Energy is a pioneering wind power development company with almost 20 years experience in the industry. It was the originator of the London Array project and is currently developing other large offshore wind power projects in UK waters.