• London Array was the world’s largest offshore wind farm when commissioned in 2013
• Pioneered the way for UK to build offshore wind farms on a much larger scale
• In 2021, electricity from London Array powered all the TVs in the UK 1.45 times over

London Array is celebrating its tenth year in operation, back in 2013 it was the world’s largest offshore wind farm. Located 20km off the north Kent coast in the Outer Thames Estuary, RWE-operated London Array has a 630MW capacity and its 175 Siemens 3.6MW turbines generate enough clean electricity to power around 500,000 British homes, while displacing around 900,000 tonnes of CO2 a year. It is maintained and operated from the Port of Ramsgate.

Planning consent was given in 2006, with the onshore elements being approved in 2007. Construction began in July 2009, was completed in December 2012 and the project was fully commissioned and inaugurated by then UK Prime Minister, David Cameron, in late 2013.

Whilst no longer the world’s largest wind farm, its success has been phenomenal in terms of power output and the economic, social and environmental impacts the wind farm has brought to coastal communities in Kent.

Production

• Total production to date (to end of October 2023) is 22,743,640 MWh (or 22.7 TWh)
• Best ever production month was December 2015 (364,512 MWh)
• In 2020, output from London Array was 25.9GWh equaling 2.4% of all UK domestic electricity consumption
• In 2021, output from London Array powered over 25% of the total UK lighting

Supply chain / jobs

• At a cost of €2.2bn to build, total spend on supply chain was significant with over 75 companies being engaged in the construction process, using local Kent suppliers where possible
• Around 6,700 individual jobs were created during the construction process
• Currently around 73 employees and a similar number of contractors have jobs at the operations and maintenance base in Ramsgate

Community benefits

• During construction a £300,000 community fund was made available to support local groups and organisations as well as to support the education and training of local young people
• Since 2013, around £500,000 has been made available in the form of community benefit funding, and, in addition, the wind farm has sponsored a number of local events and organisations. These have included Kent Coastal Week, the annual sailing regatta in Ramsgate Week, Thanet Community Awards, Pilgrims Hospices and Thanet Wanderers RUFC

Skills/Education

Recognising the importance of inspiring and teaching the next generation about renewable energy, staff are regularly involved in visiting local schools to discuss students’ career options, hosting stands at careers days, and supporting local events such as National Science and Engineering week.

Richard Crowhurst, RWE UK Offshore Operations Manager South: “The success of London Array has demonstrated that largescale offshore wind projects not only have a significant role to play in securing the UK’s energy supplies while also meeting contributing to Government renewable energy targets. But also in making a meaningful contribution to the local community it operates in with our team at site living and working locally.”

RWE has more than two decades’ experience in offshore wind in the UK, having developed and built the country’s first commercial-scale offshore wind farm at North Hoyle. London Array is one of 10 offshore wind farms across the UK, RWE owns with its partners and is currently building the 1.4 gigawatts (GW) Sofia offshore wind farm, off the east coast. RWE has a strong future pipeline in the UK and is involved in four of the UK’s seven offshore wind extension projects, plus two Round 4 Dogger Bank South projects.

London Array Offshore Wind Farm is operated by RWE on behalf of project partners.