Ørsted has taken final investment decision on Hornsea 3, which has an expected capacity of 2.9 GW and is slated to be completed in 2027.
Hornsea 3 will be Ørsted’s third gigawatt-scale project in the Hornsea zone, following Hornsea 1 at 1.2 GW and Hornsea 2 at 1.3 GW. Both are being operated out of Ørsted’s Grimsby operations and maintenance hub.
In July last year, Ørsted was awarded a contract for difference for Hornsea 3 at an inflation-indexed strike price, permitting a reduction of the awarded capacity. Ørsted will use this flexibility to submit a share of Hornsea 3’s capacity into the U.K.’s upcoming sixth allocation round.
Hornsea 3 has a value creation around the bottom end of the company’s targeted lifecycle project return range of 150-300 basis points on top of its weighted average cost of capital, says Ørsted.
Contracts in place for the project includes an agreement with Siemens Gamesa for SG 14-236 DD offshore wind turbines.
“Offshore wind is an extremely competitive global market, so we also welcome the attractive policy regime in the U.K. which has helped secure this investment,” says Mads Nipper, Ørsted group president and CEO. “We look forward to constructing this landmark project, which will deliver massive amounts of green energy to U.K. households and businesses and will be a significant addition to the world’s largest offshore wind cluster.”
Ørsted currently operates 12 U.K. offshore wind farms.
