RWE Offshore Wind and Masdar have achieved a key milestone for the DBS (Dogger Bank South) offshore wind farms as the Development Consent Order (DCO) application has been accepted into the United Kingdom Planning Inspectorate examination phase.
The DBS East and DBS West offshore wind farms, which could provide electricity for up to three million typical U.K. homes, are in shallow waters on the Dogger Bank over 100 km off the northeast coast of England. Acceptance of the DCO application moves the projects into the pre-examination phase, which will become subject to a public examination later in 2024.
Together, the projects will have up to 200 turbines with a combined estimated capacity of three gigawatts. Investment by RWE and Masdar during development and construction is predicted to deliver an economic contribution (gross value added) to the U.K. of almost 1 billion pounds, including 400 million pounds in the Humber region.
“We are thrilled to reach this pivotal point with the DBS Offshore Wind Farms,” says Sven Utermöhlen, CEO of RWE. “Our partnership with Masdar underscores our shared commitment to driving forward the U.K.’s renewable energy agenda, supporting jobs and delivering substantial economic benefits to the region. The acceptance of our DCO application by the U.K. Planning Inspectorate is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our teams, and we look forward to progressing through the next phases.”
“We are delighted that, together with our partners RWE, we have taken this significant step toward advancing our offshore wind capacity in the U.K., one of our key strategic markets,” adds Husain Al Meer, director, Global Offshore Wind at Masdar. “At Masdar, we are committed to developing clean and affordable energy that supports countries in their energy transitions, catalyzes economic growth and creates new jobs.”
RWE will be leading development, construction and operation on behalf of project partners RWE (51% share) and Masdar (49% share). RWE entered into Agreements for Lease for the two DBS projects with The Crown Estate in January 2023. In December 2023, Masdar announced it had acquired a 49% stake in the DBS offshore wind projects. The shareholding agreement between the companies was completed in February 2024.
The next steps for the projects, following a successful DCO, would be to secure Contracts for Difference (CfD), followed by financing and construction.
