UK - £4.5bn offshore wind farm approved

The developer behind a £4.5 billion wind farm which will be built off the North Devon coast has been named as RWE npower renewables.

The company was one of a series of firms which have been given the go-ahead to develop nine new offshore wind farms, paving the way for expansion in renewable energy around the UK's shores.

The Crown Estate yesterday confirmed the winners of the third round of leasing UK waters for wind farms, which could see an extra 25 gigawatts of energy generation installed – enough to power the equivalent of 19 million homes.

The Bristol Channel wind farm, known as the Atlantic Array, will now be developed by Swindon-based RWE npower renewables, a subsidiary of the German utility company RWE.

Situated 14km off the North Devon coast, the Atlantic Array would generate 1,500MW of electricity – enough to power 1.1 million homes. Construction work could start in 2014 and would be completed by 2018. A smaller scheme off the Dorset coast has been awarded to the Dutch energy company Eneco.

The Bristol Channel scheme, which will cost an estimated £4-4.5 billion to build, could give a huge boost to Westcountry businesses with contracts generated by the project including: environmental planning; research; surveying; manufacturing; on-shore assembly and commissioning; installation; logistics; training; accommodation and crew transfers.

Up to 3,000 jobs could be created in the construction phase, with between 200 and 400 people needed for the maintenance and operations side of the scheme.

RWE npower renewables' head of off-shore development UK, Alastair Gill, said the firm had yet to decide whether it would base its operations in North Devon or South Wales in the development phase.

"We don't know yet where things are going to be based – it could be at more than one base or the construction base may not be the same place as the operational base. There is a study going on at the moment to look at our port requirements," he said.

Devon County Council's Cabinet member for economic and strategic planning, William Mumford, said: "Clearly, the economic benefits to the region are potentially very great indeed. Many of the services which would be needed to support a project of this scale, such as marine expertise and engineering, are already in place in Devon.

"When it comes to renewable energy, Devon is at the forefront in developing and encouraging green energy schemes and we welcome the opportunity to play our part in supporting the project."

Johnny Gowdy, head of business support at Regen SW, the renewable energy agency for the South West of England, said: "In some previous offshore developments the amount of local economic benefit has been disappointing.

"But the South West, with its heritage of marine and engineering industries, is in a very strong position to reap the economic benefits of offshore renewables."

It was announced in 2008 that RWE npower renewables had bought Channel Energy, a company which had worked to secure a connection from the Atlantic Array to the National Grid. Mr Gill said this had put the firm in a strong position when it came to the tendering process.