Iberdrola, through its Scottish Power subsidiary, is investing £6 billion in developing the company’s biggest investment, the East Anglia Hub offshore wind complex in Scotland.
Iberdrola’s chairman, Ignacio Galán, announced this undertaking at the Global Investment Summit organized by Prime Minister Boris Johnson just two weeks before the start of COP26 in Glasgow, the headquarters for ScottishPower, which is the main partner of this summit. The chairman of the energy company confirmed that, subject to obtaining the necessary permits, this new investment package will join a record £10 billion investment earmarked by the group in its 2020-2025 plan, enabling it to double its renewable generation capacity and drive decarbonization in the United Kingdom.
“This meeting has given us the impetus we need to speed up the Net Zero commitments ahead of COP26”, explains Galán. “It also supports the British government’s plan to ramp up investment in ‘green’ industries, create jobs and growth and a cleaner, more environmentally friendly future.”
“The East Anglia Hub complex is an example of how companies can support the government’s Net Zero ambitions within a predictable, stable framework. This is what international investors need while we prepare for the COP26 climate change summit,” he adds. “I have no doubt that this is just a taste of what is yet to come, as we continue to tackle the climate emergency, making progress with the energy transition and fighting for a net-zero emissions future”.
East Anglia Hub consists of three wind farms off the Suffolk coast: East Anglia ONE North, East Anglia TWO and East Anglia THREE. The complex, with an installed capacity of more than 3,000 MW, will produce enough clean energy to supply the equivalent of more than 2.7 million households, contributing more than 7.5% to the target of 40,000 MW of installed power in the UK by 2030.
Currently, the East Anglia THREE project, with an installed power of 1,400 MW, has already secured planning permission. Likewise, planning permission applications for East Anglia ONE North (800 MW) and East Anglia TWO (900 MW) are being analyzed by the Secretary of State at the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. Subject to the outcome of these considerations, it is expected that construction work on the East Anglia Hub will start in 2023 and will be complete by 2026.
