Siemens Gamesa has produced the first wind turbine blade for the 714MW East Anglia One offshore wind farm, which will be located 43km off the Suffolk coast.
Image: The first blade produced by Siemens Gamesa for the East Anglia ONE wind farm. Photo: Courtesy of Scottish Power Ltd.
The fibre glass blade for the East Anglia One offshore wind farm has been manufactured at Siemens Gamesa’s factory at Green Port Hull. It is the first among the 306 blades which will be manufactured at the site for the project.
The blades that will be produced at the Hull factory are claimed to be comparable in length to the wingspan of an Airbus A380. The blade production is part of the contract between ScottishPower Renewables and Siemens Gamesa to produce and install the turbines for the offshore wind farm.
The wind farm is being built at a cost of £2.5bn and will include 102 turbines, each with a power-generating capacity of 7MW. The total power produced from the wind farm will be enough to power more than 630,000 British homes annually, while avoiding more than a million tons of CO2 emissions into the atmosphere.
ScottishPower Renewables, East Anglia ONE project director Charlie Jordan said: “The manufacture of the first blade from Hull is a fantastic milestone in the development of our windfarm, signalling the start of turbine installation. East Anglia ONE will soon be producing clean, renewable energy for the UK, helping to meet the nation’s carbon reduction targets.
“The fabrication of the blades from Siemens Gamesa’s facility in Hull further demonstrates our commitment to spending over 50 percent of the project investment in the UK, ensuring the benefits of East Anglia ONE are felt across the country.”
After the production at the Green Port factory, the blades will be transported down the coast to Great Yarmouth, where the turbine components will be pre-assembled following £5m co-investment to prepare Peel Ports Great Yarmouth for construction and installation activities.
Siemens Gamesa project manager Andrew Elmes said: “We are proud to work alongside ScottishPower Renewables in delivering clean energy for the future. The East Anglia ONE offshore windfarm is a world-leading project to be a part of, providing a significant boost to the UK economy and it’s extra special to be able to support it from our amazing factory in Hull.”