World’s largest wind farm off the UK coast

The world’s largest offshore wind farm was officially opened off the UK coast.

The Thanet offshore wind farm, off the southeast coast of England, has 100 turbines which will produce enough green energy a year to power the equivalent of more than 200,000 homes.

Energy company Vattenfall, which has constructed the farm – now the biggest offshore wind site in the world – said the electricity produced substantially increases the amount of green power generated in the UK.

The total capacity of the UK’s onshore and offshore wind turbines now exceeds 5GW, enough to power all the homes in Scotland.

The progress on wind power was welcomed by Energy and Climate Change secretary Chris Huhne. “We are in a unique position to become a world leader in this industry. We are an island nation and I firmly believe we should be harnessing our wind, wave and tidal resources to the maximum.

“I know that there is still more to do to bring forward the large sums of investment we want to see in low-carbon energy in the UK, and we as a government are committed to playing our part.”

Friends of the Earth warned the UK’s record on renewable energy remained “dismal”, and called on ministers to invest more in green power, saying it would also deliver jobs and low-carbon industry.

The environmental group wants to see the government guarantee funding of at least £2 billion a year for the Green Investment Bank, which aims to boost private sector spending on low-carbon technology.

And Friends of the Earth is calling on ministers to remove the barriers to developing offshore wind, for example by upgrading ports so they can ship out offshore wind turbine parts.

Campaigns and policy director for the green group, Craig Bennett, said: “The Thanet offshore wind farm is an important stride forward in securing our energy supplies and protecting us from the worst effects of climate change.

“Despite years of government promises, the UK’s record on renewable energy is still dismal – we urgently need to invest in green energy projects and to develop a sense of community ownership in them.

“Now is the time to be increasing renewable energy – nothing would do more damage to investor confidence than for the government to raise doubts about long-term support for the industry. Investing in renewable energy will boost our economy by creating new green industries and jobs – the government must ensure adequate funding and make the UK a world leader in tackling climate change.”