Renewable electricity generation in the UK outperformed fossil fuels for the first year ever in 2020, with offshore and onshore wind providing more than half of the country’s renewable electricity last year. Renewables generated 43 per cent of the UK’s electricity, while fossil fuels provided 38.5 p
The number of people working in the rapidly expanding offshore wind industry in the UK is projected to increase to 69,848 by 2026, with the private sector expected to invest GBP 60.8 billion (approx. EUR 70.5 billion) in developing, constructing and operating offshore wind farms over the next five y
Crown Estate Scotland has completed the review of the option structure for the ScotWind offshore wind leasing round, raising the maximum fee that might be paid per square kilometre of seabed from the previous GBP 10,000 (around € 12,000) to GBP 100,000 (around € 116,000). The Scottish seabed manager
RWE has taken the financial investment decision on the 1.4 GW Sofia offshore wind farm project in the UK. The 100 per cent RWE-owned project represents a total investment of approximately £ 3 billion (€ 3.48 billion). The company is now poised to forge ahead with the construction of Sofia, with onsh
The Crown Estate is commencing work to design and deliver a new leasing opportunity for early commercial-scale floating offshore wind projects in the Celtic Sea. The leasing process will focus on projects of circa 300 MW in scale, which is up to three times larger than any rights previously awarde
RWE has commissioned BWTS GmbH to provide maintenance and repair of the safety equipment at its three offshore wind farms in Germany. BWTS is providing technical examination, as well as maintenance and repair of the safety equipment, such as the access systems and chain hoists, at the Arkona, Amrumb
The UK’s Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) is set to launch the second phase of its competition for technologies that mitigate radar risk of offshore wind farms. The Windfarm Mitigation for UK Air Defence competition seeks proposals that can develop technologies to permit the coexistence of fu
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has approved a EUR 350 million loan for the construction of the 450 MW Calvados offshore wind farm in France. The EUR 2 billion project, also known as Courseulles-sur-Mer, is being developed by the Eoliennes Offshore du Calvados (EODC) consortium of EDF Renewables,
Hywind Scotland, the world’s first floating offshore wind farm, has reached the highest average capacity factor for any wind farm in the UK for its third consecutive year. With an average capacity factor of 57.1% in the twelve months to March 2021, Hywind Scotland set a new record in the UK. During
NOF has launched an offshore wind projects database for the UK supply chain to easier reach opportunities in the sector. The NOF Offshore Wind Projects Database provides access to critical project data, an insight into the industry’s key players, forecasts of market development and supply chain spen
Visser & Smit Hanab has laid and tested the onshore HV cable connecting the transformer station and HV substation of the Windpark Fryslân nearshore wind farm in the Netherlands. Approximately 23 km of 110 kV cable was laid from Breezanddijk through the Afsluitdijk and along the A7 motorway to Bolswa
Germany’s Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) has invited tenders for geophysical investigations and hydrographic surveys in the N-9.4, N-10.1 and N-10.2 wind energy areas in the North Sea. The surveys, to be carried out in 2022, are part of the geological preliminary exploration of the a
The UK-based Geowynd has signed a framework agreement with Sea and Land Project Engineering (SLPE) for the provision of advanced soil modelling. In recent months, the UK geotechnical consulting firm supported SLPE on 7 wind farm project developments in Europe and America. Geowynd did not disclose th
The remaining seabed preparation works at the Neart na Gaoithe offshore wind project are set to recommence at the beginning of April, after the winter pause. The vessel Sartor will carry out the remaining boulder relocation operations in preparation for the installation of inter-array cables in the
