Wind power in the United Kingdom

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Wind power in the United Kingdom passed the milestone of 2 GW installed capacity on 9 February 2007 with the opening of the Braes O'Doune wind farm, near Stirling.^[1] The UK became the 7th country in the world to reach this capacity. The world leader in wind power is Germany with 20.6 GW installed.^[1]

Currently, approximately 1.5% of UK electricity is generated by wind power (with a total of around 4.5% of UK electricity coming from all renewable sources ^[2]). This is expected to rise dramatically in coming years, as a result of UK Energy Policy strongly supporting new renewable energy generating capacity. In the short to medium term, the bulk of this new capacity is expected to be provided by onshore and offshore wind power.

Through the mechanism of Renewables Obligation Certificates, British electricity suppliers are now required by law to provide a proportion of their sales from renewable sources such as wind power or pay a penalty fee. The ROCs are the principal form of subsidy for UK wind power, providing around half of the revenue from wind generation^[3]. Wind energy is also exempt from the climate change levy which is paid by fossil-fuel and nuclear generators.

Governments targets anticipate a capacity utilisation factor (CF) of 30%, implying that 2GW of installed capacity will provide an average of 600MW to the national grid. A study by the Renewable Energy Foundation found that in practice only a few Scottish wind farms achieved this level, while turbines in lowland England were much less efficient, some operating at less than 10% of capacity^[4]. The foundation argued that too much subsidy had encouraged wind development on poor sites.

Contents 1 Offshore wind farms 1.1 Round 1 1.2 Round 2 1.3 List of built and proposed offshore wind farms 2 Onshore wind farms 2.1 List of built and proposed onshore wind farms 3 See also 4 References 5 External links

[edit] Offshore wind farms

The UK has been estimated to have over a third of Europe's total offshore wind resource, which is equivalent to three times the electricity needs of the nation at current rates of electricity consumption.

The first developments in UK offshore wind power came about through the now discontinued Non-Fossil Fuel Obligation (NFFO), leading to two wind farms, Blyth Offshore and Gunfleet sands.^[5] The NFFO was introduced as part of the Electricity Act 1989 and obliged UK electricity supply companies to secure specified amounts of electricity from non-fossil sources,^[6] which provided the initial spur for the commercial development of renewable energy in the UK.

The UK will require 7,500 offshore turbines by 2020 to meet EU targets^[7]

[edit] Round 1

In 1998 the British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) began discussions with the government to draw up formal procedures for negotiating with the Crown Estate, the owner of almost all the UK coastline out to distance of 12 nautical miles (22.2 km). The result was a set of guidelines published in 1999, and a huge increase in the number of applications submitted. Eighteen of the applications were granted permission to proceed in April 2001, in what has become known as round one of UK offshore wind development.

The first of the round one projects completed, and the first large scale offshore wind farm in the UK, North Hoyle, was commissioned in December 2003. The second, Scroby Sands, was completed one year later in December 2004, followed by the 90 MW Kentish Flats in 2005. The fourth, Barrow Offshore, with 30 turbines, finished construction in July 2006. Seven of the remaining projects have received consent from the planning authorities, while the remaining four are still awaiting consent, including the Shell Flat site off the coast of Lancashire.

[edit] Round 2

Lessons learnt from round one, particularly the difficulty in getting planning consent for offshore wind farms, together with the increasing pressure to reduce CO₂ emissions, prompted the department of trade and industry (DTI) to develop a strategic framework for the offshore wind industry. The result, known as Round 2, was announced in December 2003 with 15 projects with a combined capacity of 7.2 GW. By far the largest of these are the 1 GW London Array and the 1.2 GW Triton Knoll.^[8]

[edit] List of built and proposed offshore wind farms

UK Offshore Windfarms^[9][10]

Farm	Completed	Power (MW)	No. Turbines	Notes
Blyth Offshore	December 2000	4	2	Evaluation project
North Hoyle	December 2003	60	30	The UK's first major offshore wind farm
Scroby Sands	December 2004	60	30
Kentish Flats	December 2005	90	30
Barrow	May 2006	90	30	Fewer turbines built than originally planned.
Burbo Bank	October 2007	90	25	Construction started May 2006 [11]
Beatrice	August 2007	10	2	Evaluation project. Construction started 2006 [12]
Lynn/Inner Dowsing		194	54	Construction started March 2007 [13]
Gunfleet Sands 1		108	30	Construction to start in first half of 2008 [14]
Robin Rigg - Solway Firth		180	60	Construction started summer 2007 [15]
London Array		1,000	341	Permission granted December 2006 [16][17]
Thanet		300	83	Permission granted December 2006[18] Construction to begin September 2008[19]
Greater Gabbard		500	140	Approved. Turbines to be delivered in 2009 and 2010.[20]
Rhyl Flats		90	25	Construction began July 2007 [21]
Cromer		108	30	Withdrawn after approval [22]
Scarweather Sands		108	30	Approved [23]
Ormonde		108	30	Approved. Construction to begin in 2008[24].
Shell Flat		180	90	Resubmitted for planning consent
Teesside/Redcar		90	30	Submitted (TWA) [25]
Gwynt y Môr		750	up to 250	planning application submitted [26]
Sheringham Shoal		315	up to 108	planning application submitted [27]
Walney		160/440	93	planning application submitted [28]
Lincs		250	83	planning application submitted [29]
Gunfleet Sands 2		64	22	planning application submitted [30]
Docking Shoal		500	up to 83	planning application to be submitted end of 2006 [31]
Race Bank		500	up to 83	planning application to be submitted mid 2007 [32]
Triton Knoll		1,200
West Duddon		500
Atlantic Array		1,500	350	Planning stage, pending SEA, construction 2013-2018[33]

[edit] Onshore wind farms

The first windfarms in the UK were built onshore, and they currently generate more power than the offshore farms. A March 2006 report by the British Wind Energy Association forecast that onshore windfarms will be able to supply 6,000 MW peak, or on average nearly 5% of the national electricity requirement, by 2010.^[34] Despite this potential, gaining planning permission for onshore wind farms is proving difficult, with many schemes stalled in the planning system, and a high rate of refusal.^[35]

In the year to 31 March 2005, onshore wind farms, according to Ofgem, produced 1,734 GW·h (an average of 198 MW) but this is expected to rise to 2,500 GW·h (an average of 285 MW) in the following year, so there is considerable scope for further growth (16,600 MW peak capacity had been installed in Germany by 2004.^[36]

According to DTI figures onshore wind farms in the UK generated 769 GW·h in 2005, while offshore farms generated 204 GW·h.^[37] This compares to a total electricity consumption of 407,265 GW·h for the same year, meaning that the combined on and offshore contribution to UK electricity generation was less than 0.25%. In 2007 the planning permission problem was exacerbated by a shortage of spare parts for certain models of generator, which put some turbines out of action for over six months, triggering clauses in planning consents requiring removal of the non-functional turbines.^[38]

[edit] List of built and proposed onshore wind farms

This article or section is incomplete and may require expansion and/or cleanup. Please improve the article, or discuss the issue on the talk page.

UK Onshore Windfarms^[39]

Farm	Completed	Power (MW)	Turbines	Notes
Delabole[40]	1991 December	4.0	10	The UK's first commercial wind farm, owned by Good Energy
Blood Hill[41]	1992 December	2.25	10	Located near Great Yarmouth
Coal Clough	1992 December	9.6	24	Located near Burnley
Hollin Hill [42]	1993 June	9.2	23
Harlock Hill[43]	1997 April	2.5	5	Part of the Baywind Co-Op. Upgraded in 2001
Haverigg[44]	1998 July	3/5	4	Part of the Baywind Co-Op.
Bears Downs [45][46]	2001 July	9.6	16
Crystal Rig	2004 May	50	20
Hadyard Hill	2006 March	120	52
Burton Wold [47]	2006 March	20	10
Caton Moor	2006 July	16	8	Recently upgraded
Westmill[48]	2008 April	6.5	5	A co-op windfarm at Watchfield near Shrivenham, Oxfordshire
Scout Moor	2008 due July	65	26	Between Bury and Rochdale, Lancashire
Walkway, High Swainston[49]	2008	21	7	Near Sedgefield
Butterwick Moor [50]	2009	30	10	Close to the Walkway development, also near Sedgefield
Ardrossan[51]
Black Law Wind Farm		124
Whitelee Wind Farm		322
Dagenham	2004 April	3.6	2	First farm to be built in Greater London

[edit] See also

• British Wind Energy Association
• Baywind Energy Co-operative
• Good Energy
• Ecotricity
• Renewable energy in Scotland
• Energy use and conservation in the United Kingdom
• Energy policy of the United Kingdom
• Green electricity in the United Kingdom
• Renewable energy in the European Union
• Wind power
• Wind power in Scotland
• Wind turbines (UK domestic)

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• COWRIE Collaborative offshore wind research into the environment
• UK wind farm performance 2005
• The Renewable Energy Centre Wind Power in the UK.
• The Sustainable Energy Alliance UK renewable energy supporters organisation
• A Sea Change: The Wind Farm Revolution
• UK Offshore Wind: Moving Up a Gear

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