The UK's Department for Energy and Climate and Change recently granted E.ON Energy planning approval to build a 230 MW offshore wind farm off the Holderness Coast in the East Riding of Yorkshire.
The Humber Gateway Offshore wind farm will have the capacity to provide up to 150,000 homes with clean, renewable energy from up to 77 turbines, and could displace up to 300,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide every year.
E.ON was granted onshore planning approval for a new substation on industrial land near Salt End earlier this year. The substation will connect the Humber Gateway wind farm to the national grid via 30km of underground cable.
The project fits well into Britain's plans to secure a leading role in the global wind energy industry. The Telegraph recently reported that "by 2050 offshore wind could be worth £65billion to the UK and could support 220,000 jobs."
"The UK's offshore wind roll out is continuing at full speed," said Peter Madigan, Head of Offshore Renewables for RenewableUK, late last month. "...the first turbines at Walney and Greater Gabbard have started delivering electricity to the grid. Once completed these two offshore wind farms will take the UK over the 2 gigawatt (GW) mark. We now need to ensure that we are best poised to capture the full benefits such a massive infrastructure project offers, including increased employment and business activity."
News of the new investment in offshore wind comes just a week after U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and Secretary of Energy Steven Chu released a joint statement announcing the availability of up to $50.5 million for American projects that support offshore wind energy deployment.
