Celtic Sea floating wind farm to be developed by EDP and Engie Ocean Winds

Crown Estate, Britain's Crown Estate, announced on Wednesday that Ocean Winds, an Ocean Winds joint venture between Portugal’s EDP Renewables (EDP) and France’s Engie (Engie), has won the seabed lease rights for a floating wind farm of 1.5 gigawatts in the Celtic Sea, off the coasts of Wales and South West England.

The UK aims to decarbonise the electricity sector by 2030 in order to reduce its reliance upon fossil fuels, as well as to drive down costs. It also aims to increase the offshore wind capacity from 16 GW to 43-50 GW by the end decade.

Ed Miliband, Britain's Energy Secretary, said that floating offshore wind in the Celtic Sea would drive growth in Wales and the South West. It will also create thousands of jobs, including in Port Talbot and Bristol. This will bolster Britain's energy security and help to power an industrial renewal.

Crown Estate announced that Ocean Winds would pay 350 pounds (468.55) for each megawatt of power per year. This means it will be paying 525,000 pounds for the sites per year, excluding VAT.

This is the third lease offered on the site. Equinor, a joint-venture between EDF Renewables UK, and ESB were awarded leases in the first half of this year.

Crown Estate stated that the three projects could create enough electricity to power over four million homes, and more than 5,000 jobs.

The floating wind project can be installed at deeper depths than the fixed-bottom foundations. This allows for a stronger wind and more constant wind to generate power.

The Crown Estate is a commercial enterprise that operates independently. Its profits are sent to the Treasury, and they serve as a benchmark for determining the amount of public funding allocated to the royal family. (Reporting and editing by Susanna Twiddale)

(source: Reuters)