innogy and Statkraft have secured a contract in the UK's Contract for Difference (CFD) auction for the 860MW Triton Knoll offshore wind project.
The two companies have submitted a bidding of €74.75 per megawatt hour in a tender from the UK Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS).
innogy and Statkraft, each own a 50% stake in the wind farm and innogy will manage it. Total estimated cost of the wind farm is £2bn.
Final investment decision is yet to be taken in mid-2018. Offshore construction is expected to start by 2020 and it is scheduled for commissioning in 2021.
innogy SE CEO Peter Terium said: “I am very pleased that Triton Knoll has been successful in the latest UK auction. Together with our partner Statkraft, we have passed an important milestone on the way to realising our offshore wind power project and also proved that we can be successful in a very competitive market environment.
“A large proportion of our planned investment in growth is intended to flow into renewable energies. Together with our grid and retail businesses, they will make innogy the innovative, decentralised and sustainable energy company of the future.”
The offshore wind farm will be located 32km off the coast of Lincolnshire in east of England. The monopile structures supporting the wind turbines will be installed at average water depth of 18m.
The wind farm will be able to produce enough electricity to be supplied to at least 800,000 UK households. When operational, it can help in reducing about 1.2 million tonnes of CO2 and 28,000 tonnes of SO2 emissions.
Presently, innogy has a portfolio of 3.7GW in renewable energy projects, out of which 900MW comes from offshore wind. Between the years 2017 and 2019, the company intends to invest about €1.5bn to €1.7bn more in renewable energy projects.
Image: innogy and Statkraft secure contract to build 860MW Triton Knoll offshore wind farm. Photo: Courtesy of innogy.