Equinor Gwynt Glas wins UK floating offshore wind leases

The Crown Estate announced on Thursday that Equnior, a joint-venture between EDF Renewables UK, and ESB has won seabed leases for the construction of floating wind farms 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, and 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 in a Crown Estate press release that "Floating Offshore Wind will transformative economic growth for Wales and the South West. It will unlock thousands of jobs, especially in Port Talbot and Bristol. It will also bolster our energy security, and deliver industrial renewal."

The Crown Estate, the manager of seabeds around England, Wales, and Northern Ireland said that Equnior, and Gwynt Glas, had each won leases giving the right to each build 1.5 gigawatts (GW) floating winds projects in its most recent seabed leasing round.

Crown Estate stated that the companies would pay 350 pounds per megawatt for leases per annum. This means both groups will be paying 525,000 pounds for each site per year, excluding VAT.

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, an independently-run commercial enterprise, is a benchmark for public funding of the Royal Family. Its profits are sent to the Treasury, but they also serve as a measure for its level. ($1 = 0.7470 pounds) (Reporting and editing by Susanna Twiddale)

(source: Reuters)