The Crown Estate has been cleared to sign lease agreements for more than 8 gigawatts (GW) of new fixed-bottom offshore wind projects off England and Wales as part of Leasing Round 4.
The land and seabed manager said it had been given clearance by the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) to enter into lease agreements for six projects, totalling just shy of 8GW of capacity.
Bidders were allowed to identify and propose their own project sites within four areas of seabed – Dogger Bank, Eastern Regions, South East, and Northern Wales & Irish Sea – made available by Crown Estate last year.
On the east coast, RWE Renewables secured rights to two 1.5GW project areas off the Yorkshire coast, while the Green Investment Group and TotalEnergies (LON:TTE) gained approval for a further 1.5GW project off the Humber Estuary.
To the west, a consortium of EnBW and BP (LON:BP) secured rights to a 1.5GW project north east of Anglesey, and another off Barrow-in-Furness.
Finally, a 480MW scheme was approved near Blackpool, and backed by Cobra and Flotation Energy.
© Supplied by Crown EstateThe lease awards closely follow plans announced by the land manager to develop floating wind farms in the Celtic Sea, which could bring up to 4GW of additional capacity.
Business and energy secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said: “This month saw the price of offshore wind fall to record lows and today’s announcement will take us another step closer to increasing current levels of capacity almost five-fold by 2030.”
Today I’ve given @TheCrownEstate the green light to take several offshore wind projects to the next stage.
These new sites will help secure more clean, affordable, homegrown power for millions of UK households, while reducing our reliance on costly, volatile fossil fuels. https://t.co/BxoCKik75z
— Kwasi Kwarteng (@KwasiKwarteng) July 19, 2022
The UK’s offshore wind portfolio now stands at 43GW of capacity either in operation, construction or planning, with up to 37GW of further potential inbound as a result of leasing round 4, ScotWind activity and the planned Celtic Sea projects.
Crown Estate chief executive Dan Labbad said the approval from government was a “pivotal moment” on the UK’s journey to net zero.
“It is the result of a tremendous collective effort from industry, environmental and conservation stakeholders, governments, and technical experts who have helped shape a rigorous and evidence-led outcome.
“In convening this broad range of stakeholders, we have been able to take a more informed and strategic approach to environmental compensation than ever before, ensuring we balance our rich biodiversity with the urgent need to progress vital renewable infrastructure,” he added.
Welsh Government Minister for Climate Change, Julie James, noted: “As the first country in the world to declare a climate emergency, we welcome our partnership with The Crown Estate to deliver renewable energy projects here in Wales.
“We want to harness the power of our natural resources to benefit our communities, through projects that invest in local supply chains and green, skilled jobs.”
