Earlier this week,
Minister of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Graham Stuart MP, joined
150 guests and employees to celebrate the official opening of the O&M
base for Dogger Bank wind farm, the world's largest offshore wind farm.
The 3.6 GW wind farm is comprised of three phases: Dogger
Bank A, Dogger
Bank B and
Dogger
Bank C, with
each phase being built at 1.2 GW capacity.
The state-of-the-art
base in South Tyneside will be the hub for operations, and also houses
the control room that will monitor and manage 5% of the UK's electricity
generating capacity which is produced by the offshore wind farm.
Over 400 long-term
jobs have been created in the local community to support O&M from South
Tyneside for the 35-year life of Dogger Bank. Additionally, the world-class
facility, designed by Newcastle-based Ryder Architecture, has been constructed
and will be operated in line with the UK Green Building Council's (UKGBC)
Net Zero Carbon Buildings Framework. Bowmer + Kirkland built the base with
a focus on local construction, with over £7.5 million spend with construction
companies in Northeast England.
Dogger Bank wind farm
is a joint venture between Equinor (40%), SSE Renewables (40%) and Vårgrønn
(20%). Equinor will be lead operator of the wind farm on completion for
its expected operational life of around 35 years. Meanwhile, SSE Renewables
is lead operator for the development and construction of Dogger Bank.
Graham Stuart, Minister
of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, said: “The UK already boasts
the four largest offshore wind farms in the world and I am delighted that
Dogger Bank will overtake all of them in three years’ time. Having
already delivered on green jobs and growth, Dogger Bank will be at the
heart of boosting energy security for Britain and meeting the Energy
Security Secretary’s ambition to have among the cheapest wholesale electricity
prices in Europe.”
Oliver Cass, Dogger
Bank Director at SSE Renewables, said: “Today is an important day for
everyone involved in our ground-breaking project as we move closer to delivering
first power in the summer. Building a wind farm on this scale requires
huge talent and dedication. I’d like to pay tribute to everyone who’s
played their part in our journey so far, including the thousands of skilled
UK employees who are truly world-class.”
Pål
Eitrheim, EVP Renewables at Equinor, said: “We’re proud to be delivering
Dogger Bank Wind Farm with our partners SSE Renewables and Vårgrønn. We
look forward to operating this major power generation asset for the next
35 years from the state-of-the art O&M base at the Port of Tyne. At
Equinor, we always aim to bring economic value to the local community hosting
our offshore wind project. This base is a shining example of the long-term,
positive contribution that offshore wind will continue to bring to the
North East of England.”
For more information on offshore wind
farms worldwide, click
here.