The UK Government has today granted consent for the Outer Dowsing Offshore Wind farm, located in the Southern North Sea, 54km (33 miles) from the Lincolnshire Coast.
The consent enables the project to build and operate an offshore wind farm comprising up to 100 turbines and associated infrastructure. Underground onshore cables will carry the power from the landfall site close to Anderby Marsh (north of Skegness) to a new onshore substation at Surfleet Marsh in South Lincolnshire.
The decision follows the recommendation from The Planning Inspectorate after a thorough examination process that incorporated feedback gathered from local communities and stakeholders during consultation.
David Few, Project Director said, “This is great news for the project and for the country, as it means Outer Dowsing Offshore Wind is one step closer to building enough UK-generated power to supply 1.6 million homes using the renewable energy of the wind. We would like to thank all those who have contributed to the project so far. Together, our efforts are making a major contribution to the UK Government’s clean power ambitions and our future energy security”
Nicolas Payer, Country Chair for TotalEnergies UK, said, “TotalEnergies is delighted that the Outer Dowsing Offshore Wind project has reached this important milestone. TotalEnergies has been a long-term investor in this project, which will make a significant contribution to providing low-carbon power to homes and businesses across the UK.”
Sharn Ward, Head of Europe for Corio Generation, said, “The consent award for Outer Dowsing Offshore Wind comes after four years of hard work by some of the most talented individuals in the industry and is a testament to the thorough and diligent approach undertaken by the project team”
The project is expected to create £2 billion of UK investment during its lifetime, which could extend past 35 years. Over 1000 UK-based skilled jobs are estimated to be created during the construction period and hundreds of skilled roles will be needed during the operations and maintenance phase.
Outer Dowsing Offshore Wind is being developed by TotalEnergies, Corio Generation and affiliates, and Gulf Development.
The project team will now continue working towards commencement of construction.
