The first of 102 wind turbines has come into operation and is supplying electricity to the grid. Once completed in 2020, East Anglia One will be the largest wind farm in the world.
It is like laying the first stone of what will become our home. That is the feeling the technicians must have experienced after connecting the first wind turbine of East Anglia One to the national grid, which came into operation last week. This is the first of 102 wind turbines that, once the project is completed in 2020, will make up what is considered the world's largest offshore wind farm. With an installed capacity of 714 megawatts (MW), it is estimated to be capable of powering 630,000 English households, almost equivalent to the entire population of Glasgow.
The announcement was made by Iberdrola, the Spanish company that has invested approximately 2.8 billion euros in the project. The first turbine has thus been connected to the British electricity grid, and will form part of the facility situated in the North Sea, approximately 50 kilometres off the coast of the county of Suffolk, in the United Kingdom, and which is expected to be completed by next year.
"Connecting the first wind turbine to the grid is a milestone, the culmination of incredibly hard work by everyone, from local suppliers to employees of national and international companies," said Charlie Jordan, project manager of East Anglia One. "Once fully operational, East Anglia One will produce the renewable energy that the United Kingdom needs, while at the same time providing stable jobs and opportunities for local people and businesses."
A facility of this kind, in addition to providing renewable energy and supporting the country's energy transition, has created thousands of jobs: approximately 1,300 people are working on the project, coming from various countries including Spain, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and the United Arab Emirates. It has also given a further boost to the Spanish wind sector, employing local companies such as Navantia, Windar and Siemens-Gamesa.
The East Anglia One offshore wind farm will be built over an area of 300 square kilometres. The 102 wind turbines, built by Siemens and pre-assembled and transported by sea once mounted, will have a diameter equal to the wingspan of an Airbus A380, approximately 80 metres. Once operational, the facility will thus contribute to increasing the share of renewables in Europe.
