Westermost Rough offshore wind farm declared open

UK Green Investment Bank plc (GIB) Chief Executive Shaun Kingsbury yesterday (1 July) attended the inauguration of Westermost Rough – the first offshore wind farm in the world to make commercial use of giant 6 MW turbines.

The wind farm is a joint venture between DONG Energy (50%), GIB (25%) and Marubeni Corporation (25%).

It is capable of generating up to 210 MW of electricity, meeting the electricity demands of more than 150,000 homes.

Over 900 people were involved in the construction of the wind farm and up to 100 staff from DONG Energy and its partners will be based in the purpose-built Operations & Maintenance base in Grimsby’s Royal Dock where the event was held.

Speaking at the inauguration, Shaun hailed Westermost Rough as a “pioneering project” pointing out that it was almost 24 years to the day that the world’s first offshore wind farm – Vindeby, off the coast of Denmark – was commissioned.

"Westermost Rough has helped advance the offshore wind sector across the world by utilising new technology for the first time; increasing performance levels while decreasing costs. We congratulate DONG Energy on its delivery of a world-class project."

Shaun Kingsbury
Chief Executive, Green Investment Bank