Where are offshore windfarms and where will they be?

Offshore windfarm developments, round two developments.

The accepted proposals for Round Two of offshore wind farm developments were announced in December 2003 and promise another fifteen sites in three Strategic Areas.

These are the Thames Estuary, the Greater Wash and the North West coast of England. In contrast to the Round One developments, Round Two installations are expected to be larger, more concentrated and further off the coast outside of territorial waters.

The government chose the three Strategic Areas based on a number of factors:

· Commercial viability and interest
· Wind resource
· Soft seabed sediment
· Shallow water
· Presence of large ports
· Connection to the National Grid.

The developers at the accepted sites must now undertake an Environmental Impact Assessment to take into account the various constraints to development at each area.

Together the proposed developments promise to produce between 5.4-7.2 gigawatts of generating capacity that will provide enough electricity to power one in six UK households.

The Greater Wash, which includes the Norfolk/Suffolk area has been targeted as the major area for development and is therefore in prime position to lead the way in UK offshore wind farm technology.

Wind farm sites within the Greater Wash which may be considered as off the coast of Norfolk/Suffolk include Sheringham Shoal, Dudgeon East and Docking Shoal.

Click on image to see larger Map of Round 1 and 2 locations (PDF)

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