Posted on 15-7-2003

Wind Of Change For UK Energy

Government announces huge offshore power generation projects intended to be the most advanced in the world

by Paul Brown, environment correspondent, July 15, 2003, The Guardian

The world's biggest wind farms will be built in three sites off the English coast, providing enough power for one in six British homes, Patricia Hewitt, the trade and industry secretary, said yesterday.

The announcement, which the government claims will create 20,000 jobs, is designed to boost the renewable energy sector so that Britain can reach its target of 10% of electricity from renewables by 2010.

The wind farms will involve building more than 3,000 towers between five and 75 miles off the coast in three areas, the Thames Estuary, the Wash on the east coast and from Morecambe Bay to north Wales.

This is in addition to the 17 proposals from an earlier round - which were limited to 30 turbines - of which one is already being built and the rest are in various stages of development.

The new plans allow fields of unlimited size, probably 300 turbines or more, and will mean that the electricity will be considerably cheaper - probably less than from existing nuclear stations.

Technology still under development means the wind turbines will be up to five megawatts, far larger than anything in existence, producing five times as much electricity for each tower as the first generation of turbines built on land. They will stand in water between 10 and 30 metres deep on towers projecting 80 metres above the water line where even in the calmest weather there is a breeze sufficient to turn the blades.

The electricity will be collected in a hub offshore and fed into the national grid via undersea cable.

In order to protect inshore fisheries and coastal birds there will be a five mile corridor round the coast before the wind farms start. New legislation to allow the farms to be built outside UK's 12 mile territorial limit will be introduced in the next session of parliament.

Anger by environment groups and industry at the government's failure to exploit the vast reserves of wind power off the British coast were replaced with delight yesterday at the sheer scale of the plans.

Ms Hewitt claimed that using offshore oil technology to build the wind farms ensured that the UK would develop the largest and most advanced wind industry in the world.

Already research and devel opment into wind energy is well established in Britain with more than 500 jobs in the Isle of Wight involved in blade production.

The trade secretary's confidence is backed by bids from 29 of Britain's largest companies. Companies that sell electricity have an obligation to provide 10.4% of their supplies from green sources by 2010 and will pay a fine if they fail to do so. Apart from them, companies like Shell are already building wind farms and Dutch firms like Vesta which have a world lead will want a share of the UK market.

Ms Hewitt made it clear that government policy was to develop renewables and she saw no future for nuclear power. "The UK has 40% of Europe's wind energy resources and we intend to exploit it. This is a historic moment for the renewables sector - we intend to become a world leader in offshore wind."

Objections by the Ministry of Defence to offshore wind farms had been overcome and there were no problems with shipping lanes. By 2010 the renewables sector would be receiving £1 billion a year in support.

The UK needs 100 gigawatts of electricity to keep the lights on. Six gigawatts will come from wind farms announced yesterday, only half of which will be completed by 2010.

Bryony Worthington from Friends of the Earth commented: "We are delighted. It marks a sea change in UK energy policy. But it should be just the start. We now need a similar commitment to harnessing the energy potential of biomass, waves, tides and the sun to replace dirty nuclear and fossil fuel dinosaurs."

The only dissent came from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds which said it remained nervous that migrating birds may fly into rotating blades and be killed. "Because of that, we reserve the right to object to the development of some sites and will insist on pre- and post-construction assessments of the implications for birds," said Mark Avery, head of conservation.

Harnessing nature

Towers containing the turbines will rise to 80 metres above sea level, with blades up to 50 metres long

Wind farms will be five miles off the coast, almost impossible to see on cloudy days but showing white against blue skies

When all the farms are built they will produce enough electricity to power all the homes in London - about 8 million people or 15% of the country

Danish experience shows the tower bases make good sites for shellfish - attracting both fish and ducks to a new food supply. The RSPB remains nervous, however, fearing migrating birds may crash into the blades and be killed

Turbines are too big to be transported by road so they will have to made where they can be loaded on to barges for delivery out to sea

The first large offshore wind farm of 30 turbines is being built off Hoyle in north Wales and is being completed this year in a single summer. It is expected to produce electricity by autumn.