Here is the list of world’s largest offshore wind farms in operation:
London Array: Located in the Thames Estuary, UK, the 630MW London Array offshore wind farm is the world’s biggest operational offshore wind farm. Developed by a consortium of Masdar, E.ON and DONG Energy, the offshore area of the wind farm is approximately 100km². In February 2014, DONG Energy had signed an agreement with La Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec to sell half of its 50% stake in 630MW London Array 1 offshore wind farm, for about GBP644m ($1, 058m). The wind farm has 175 wind turbines and generates enough electricity to power around half a million homes, and reduces 900,000 tons of CO2 emissions annually.
Image: London Array offshore wind farm. Photo: courtesy of London Array.
Gemini Wind Farm: Located in the Dutch North Sea, the 600MW Gemini wind farm features 150 turbines supplied by Siemens. It is by far the largest offshore wind farm ever built in the Netherlands, and the second-largest in the world. Owners of the €2.8bn Gemini offshore wind farm include Northland Power with 60% stake, Siemens Financial Services with 20% stake, Van Oord Dredging and Marine Contractors with 10% stake and N.V. HVC with the remaining 10% stake. The wind farm generates enough clean and renewable energy to meet the needs of 1.5 million people in the Netherlands, and reduce the country's CO2 emissions by 1.25 million tons per year.
Gode Wind: With a capacity to generate about 582MW of clean electricity, Gode Wind 1 and 2 offshore wind farms located in the German North Sea. The wind farm features 97 turbines supplied by Siemens. They are expected to meet the power needs of about 600,000 German households per year. While Dong Energy owns 50% of stake in the wind farms, the infrastructure fund Global Infrastructure Partners holds the remaining stake in Gode Wind 1. Talanx also holds an indirect interest in the wind farm. In the second wind farm, four Danish pension funds, including PKA and Industriens Pension, have a total holding of 50%. The wind farms were inaugurated in June 2017.
Image: Dong Energy inaugurates 582MW Gode 1 and 2 offshore wind farms. Photo: Courtesy of DONG Energy A/S.
Gwynt y Môr: Located off the coast of North Wales, UK, the 576MW Gwynt y Môr offshore wind farm was constructed with a cost of £2bn. The wind farm features 160 Siemens 3.6MW turbines that generate enough energy for more than 400,000 homes in the UK. As of June 2015, RWE Innogy owned a 60% stake in the project, while Stadtwerke München and Siemens held 30% and 10% interests respectively. The wind farm extends over an area of about 80km² and includes two offshore substations and 134kms of onshore cable installations.
Greater Gabbard: With an installed capacity of 504MW, the Greater Gabbard offshore wind farm was built with a cost of £1.5bn. It is located 25km off the coast of Suffolk, North Sea. The wind farm features 140 turbines rated at 3.6MW each. It generates enough power to meet the energy needs of around 530,000 homes. It was developed by Greater Gabbard Offshore Winds Limited (GGOWL), a joint venture between Airtricity and Fluor. In October 2017, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy had announced the renewal of its contract to service the Greater Gabbard wind farm. The five-year contract involves operation and maintenance of the wind farm until 2022.
Image: Windpark in der Nordsee. Vermutlich Greater Gabbard. Photo courtesy of Ziko van Dijk/Wikipedia.
Anholt: Officially inaugurated in September 2013, the 400MW Anholt offshore wind farm is located in Denmark. It consists of 111 Siemens wind turbines with each having a rated capacity of 3.6MW. The wind farm generates CO2-free power that is enough to meet the annual power needs of 400,000 Danish households, or 4% of Denmark's total power consumption.
BARD Offshore 1: Located 100km north-west of Borkum Island in the North Sea, Bard Offshore 1 has a total installed capacity of 400MW. It covers an area of 60km² with 80 turbines rated at 5MW each. The wind firm was developed by Bard Engineering. Officially inaugurated in August 2013, it currently contribution to a major part of Germany's offshore power production.
