RWE has entered into agreements with The Crown Estate to develop the Dogger Bank South offshore wind farm sites, comprising of DBS East and DBS West. These sites are situated more than 100km offshore in the North Sea's Dogger Bank region and have the potential to generate up to 1.5 GW of power each. Together, they have the capacity to produce enough renewable energy to power over 3 million UK homes annually.
Welcoming the signing, Tom Glover, RWE's UK country chair said:” RWE is one of the world's leaders in offshore wind, and the UK plays a key strategic role in the growth of our renewables business and becoming carbon neutral by 2040. With 10 offshore wind farms now in operation around the UK, RWE is already a leading partner in delivering clean, home-grown energy and security of electricity supply. Dogger Bank South (East) and Dogger Bank South (West) will be our largest offshore wind developments to date; using our industry expertise pioneered over 20 years in the UK, we plan to maximise this potential for the benefit of local businesses, creating new, high quality long term jobs and supporting new skills development, investing in both the regional and national economies. We are delighted to be able to take the next steps towards realising this important energy project and look forward to working with local people along the way.”
RWE has been actively working on the development of its DBS project for nearly two years in order to assist the UK Government's goal of achieving net zero emissions. This has included conducting offshore and onshore studies, gathering meteorological data, and conducting various geophysical and environmental surveys. In July 2022, RWE submitted the Scoping Report for the DBS projects to the Planning Inspectorate, which subsequently issued a Scoping Opinion in September 2022.
In July 2022, the results of the Holistic Network Design (HND) process, conducted by National Grid ESO, were released. The results indicated that connections to the UK electricity network for both projects would be made to a new National Grid substation located near the Creyke Beck National Grid substation. Since then, RWE has been engaged in the process of selecting a suitable site to house the onshore electrical infrastructure required to transfer the electricity generated by the wind farms into the UK electricity network.
RWE, a leading player in renewables, plans to publish a Preliminary Environmental Impact Report (PEIR) in Spring 2023, which will detail shortlisted locations and routes for their projects. The purpose of the PEIR is to provide early information for stakeholders to understand the impacts of the projects. RWE intends to submit an application for Development Consent in 2024.
The company plans to invest more than €50 billion by 2030 to grow its green business globally, with £15 billion allocated for the UK. In 2022, the 856 megawatts Triton Knoll offshore wind farm became fully operational, and the 1.4 GW Sofia offshore wind farm is currently under construction. RWE is also involved in four of the UK's seven offshore wind extension projects, targeting the delivery of an additional 1.3 GW of capacity. The company is also exploring floating wind projects, including in the Celtic Sea region.
