The UK took a step towards meeting its target of generating 33GW of energy from offshore wind farms by 2020 yesterday, after the Crown Estate agreed to purchase a prototype of the world's largest offshore wind turbine.
The 7.5MW turbine, also known as the Britannia project, has been developed by Clipper Windpower Plc and will be assembled and tested at Clipper's Centre of Excellence for Offshore Wind in Blyth in the north east of England. It will then be installed offshore by the Crown Estate as part of a project to test the effectiveness and viability of the new generation of giant purpose-built offshore turbines.
"We believe that our support for the Britannia project, through the acquisition of this purposely designed new generation offshore turbine project, will drive forward the development of turbine technology designed for the challenges of the offshore environment," said Rob Hastings, director of the marine estates at the Crown Estate. "This is an important step in the future of offshore wind and a great opportunity to help establish a new industrial base of activity to advance the UK’s leadership in renewable energy."
The deal is significant as the UK is working to meet the government target of generating 33GW of offshore wind capacity and the Crown Estate owns almost the entire UK territorial seabed out to 12 nautical miles. In addition, it also has the rights to lease seabed for the generation of renewable energy on the continental shelf within the Renewable Energy Zone which extends out to around 200 nautical miles.
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