World's Second Largest Offshore Wind Farm Opens

The UK's Energy and Business Minister Michael Fallon has officially opened the second largest offshore wind farm in the world. Greater Gabbard, located off the coast of Suffolk, currently has 140 turbines and is expected to double that number after the Galloper wind farm extension is completed in 2017.

Greater Gabbard, a £1.3 billion project, is generating enough power more than half a million homes. The offshore wind industry as a whole has the potential to provide enough clean power to accommodate 11 million homes in the UK by the end of this decade.

Minister Fallon notes, "The UK leads the world in offshore wind power generation with more capacity than the rest of the world combined, and we want to see this sector grow even further. Greater Gabbard has already brought jobs and wider benefit to the local community, with hundreds of people employed on site, and a £150,000 fund created to support local initiatives, which will be managed by Suffolk Community Foundation."

The renewable industry has broader economic implications, says Fallon. "Today, I visited Seajacks, a British company based in Great Yarmouth, who are building the world's largest and most advanced offshore wind farm installation vessel to transport turbines out to this great wind farm. This sector is an engine of our economy. By the end of this decade, tens of thousands of additional jobs could be created in the supply-chain for offshore wind throughout the UK."

The Offshore Wind Industrial Strategy presents Government and industry's joint plans to help build a thriving UK supply chain for offshore wind.



2013/08/12 09:08:45 Source：(Smart Meters)

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