Major offshore construction has taken place throughout 2013 at Gwynt y Môr, one of the world’s largest offshore wind farms, located eight miles off the North Wales coast in Liverpool Bay.
Tucked behind RWE npower renewables’ existing wind farms of Rhyl Flats and North Hoyle, the new 160 turbine development has grown from just 32 full foundations in January, to 107 complete turbines by the end of the year. It’s most important achievement to date, though, came in August – when this highly significant clean energy project generated and exported electricity for the first time into the National Grid, with the switch on of the first turbine.
It’s been a year of milestones as the wind farm has grown throughout 2013:
• 18 January – The first turbine components arrive at the Port of Mostyn • 16 May – the first turbine is installed offshore • 2 July – Subsea export cable works are completed • 10 August – The final monopile foundation was installed • 29 August – First generation was achieved • November – The St Asaph site office, alongside the new 132kV/400kV onshore substation, is closed as works there are largely completed • 28 November – the project ends the year on a high, marking the installation offshore of its 100th turbine.
RWE npower renewables’ Gwynt y Môr Project Director, Toby Edmonds , reflected on such an important year in the project’s construction: “2013 has been a year of significant construction milestones for the project. Perhaps more than any other year on Gwynt y Môr to date, 2013 has seen the maturing from plan to reality of one of the most significant offshore wind projects in the world and the delivery of the huge environmental and economic benefits it brings.
“In January we took delivery of the first wind turbine components to our new base at the Port of Mostyn. In May we installed our first turbine offshore. In August that turbine exported its first electricity to the National Grid and as the year draws to a close, 107 of the 160 turbines are now in place.
“As we look ahead to 2014 we can expect construction of the wind farm to be completed later in the year, the operations and maintenance base at the Port of Mostyn to become fully open and the Gwynt y Môr Community Benefit Fund to announce how its monies will be administered.”
In addition to the project achievements, the Tourism Fund associated with the construction of Gwynt y Môr has made substantial donations to two North Wales projects in 2013. In July £155,000 was awarded to Denbighshire County Council to support the redevelopment of Rhyl Harbour. Earlier this month, £130,000 was earmarked to support the new Green Links Project – a major new partnership between Denbighshire and Conwy Councils linking walking and cycling opportunities, with nature reserves and other facilities along the North Wales coast.
Gwynt y Môr is a €2billion offshore wind farm on schedule to become operational in 2014. To date its construction, has enabled the injection of over £350million into the UK supply chain, been responsible for creating and securing employment for over 2,500 people in the UK, and expects to sustain over 110 jobs long term, from the new multi-million pound operations and maintenance base, at the Port of Mostyn.
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Press release, January 6, 2014; Image: RWE