Monday 4 November 2013

Vattenfall confirms £150m invesment in Kent wind farm

Swedish energy firm Vattenfall has confirmed plans to invest £150 million to extend its wind farm off the Kent coast.

The UK Government gave its consent for the 49.5MW Kentish Flats Extension earlier this year, which will see the company add 15 turbines to the existing 30-turbine wind farm with a capacity of 90MW.

The Kentish Flats offshore wind farm is expected to generate enough electricity to power around 42,000 households when operational in 2015.

Peter Wesslau, Vattenfall’s UK Country Manager said the company is committed to developing wind power in the UK.

He added: “The UK is currently one of the most attractive places in Europe to invest in wind power and we are keen to continue building our business here.”

The comments marks a sharp contrast with the possibility Centrica could ditch plans for its £2billion Race Bank wind farm because government subsidies are insufficient, the Telegraph reported over the weekend, citing anonymous sources.

Energy Secretary Ed Davey said the Kent Flats announcement is "testament to the power of inward investment" in the UK.

He added: “Offshore wind is a major success story for the UK which brings economic benefit to our shores, supports thousands of skilled jobs and is an important contributor to our energy mix. The UK is well placed to maintain its position as the world’s biggest offshore wind market out to 2020.”

Vattenfall also owns and operates the 300MW Thanet Offshore Wind Farm off Kent and the 150MW Ormonde Offshore Wind Farm off the Cumbrian coast. It submitted plans to build a £190 million wind farm in the south west of Scotland earlier this year.