Swedish state-owned power company Vattenfall has announced that its proposed 1.8GW Norfolk Vanguard Offshore Wind Farm has received planning approval from the UK Government.
The company has now secured consent for both projects in its proposed Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone, after the government approved the Norfolk Boreas project in December last year.
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Vattenfall UK Country manager Danielle Lane said: “Today is a major step forward for a project that will help to unlock the huge potential of offshore wind for the UK.
“We’re committed to making sure that these projects bring real, lasting benefit to the East of England – with jobs, supply chain and skills investment throughout construction and operation.
“We’ll be working even more closely now with local communities as we begin to take the project towards construction.
“This will include preparatory works on the ground, but also work with our local partners to make sure we get our plans absolutely right to maximise benefits to the region.”
The Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone will have the capacity to generate enough green energy to power 3.9 million UK homes a year.
Norfolk Vanguard and Norfolk Boreas will produce up to 3.6GW of green energy collectively once they are operational.
The two projects will also support the UK Government’s plan to install 40GW of offshore wind capacity by 2030.
Vattenfall Wind Business Area head Helene Biström said: “Norfolk Vanguard and Norfolk Boreas are industry-leading projects, with their designs coordinated to minimise the impact on the environment and communities. We are very pleased to receive consent for Norfolk Vanguard.
“Although the decision was unfortunately made too late to enable us to bid this project into the current Contracts for Difference (CfD) auction round four, we will now look into potential opportunities to progress this project, working closely with the supply chain and local communities.”
