Crown Estate approves NW wind farm extensions

Expansions to offshore wind farm sites in Liverpool Bay and off the Cumbrian coast have been given the go ahead by The Crown Estate.

Offshore wind farm developer Dong Wind UK plans to extend the area of the Burbo Bank site in Liverpool Bay, a bay of the Irish Sea between north east Wales, Cheshire, Lancashire and Merseyside to the east of the Irish Sea, and at the Walney site in Cumbria.

Another three wind farm developments, off the coasts of Suffolk and Kent, were also given the green light today.

The approval of all five extensions means enough power will be provided for an extra 1.4m homes.

The selected developers will finalise agreements with The Crown Estate in the coming weeks. After this, developers will commence the statutory consenting process.

The Crown Estate said each area extension will require a full, new planning application including an Environmental Impact Assessment and a full consultation.

The Crown Estate added it will only grant a lease allowing construction to start when statutory consents have been obtained from appropriate decision making bodies.

Rob Hastings, The Crown Estate's director of the marine estate, said: "It is another positive step in the maturing of the offshore wind industry and will significantly support the growth of the supply chain as it adds further to the pipeline of construction projects. This announcement shows The Crown Estate's commitment to help develop this maturing sector with a view to driving the UK offshore wind energy industry forward and to creating a long-term sustainable energy source for the UK."