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Offshore Wind Round 1 - April 2001

In April 2001the Prime Minister made a keynote speech on Renewable Energy to a select group of greens. This is part of what he said:"I believe the role of Government is to accelerate the development and take up of these new technologies until self-sustaining markets take over. The Government's programme for incentivising renewables will create a new market worth over £500 million through the Renewables Obligation, Climate Change Levy exemptions and the Non Fossil Fuel Obligation. We have already announced £100 million to support offshore wind and energy crops. Last year I asked the Performance and Innovation Unit to undertake a major study into the future of UK renewable energy. Today I can announce a further £100 million to support those technologies identified by the report. I know that a number of green groups have been campaigning for a target of 100,000 solar PV installations. This new money will help us to promote solar PV, give a boost to offshore wind, kick start energy crops, and bring on stream other new generation technologies. This investment in renewable technology is a major down-payment in our future, and will help open up huge commercial opportunities for Britain."Tony Blair seems to be saying that onshore wind will be supported by the existing NFFO/SRO contracts and the climate change levy, which is not imposed on windfarms. The new money he is allocating will go the new technologies including offshore, but apparently not onshore wind.A month after this speech, a list was produced by the DTI of 18 sites for offshore windfarms, which presumably will get some sort of help from the Prime Minister's new funds. The sites are all included in the new 2001/2002 edition of the Red Booklet, in the zone where the nearest land is situated. They are between 0.9 and 6.2 miles offshore, two being less than the 3 miles generally considered 'acceptable'. Cleveleys, near to Blackpool, will have no less than three sites. Each of the 18 sites will have a maximum of 30 turbines and the potential total of up to 540 turbines was said in the announcement to be capable of supplying the electricity for over a million homes. The Crown Estates, which owns the seabed around Britain, announced the names of the developers who will be 'seeking the necessary statutory consents'. One of these, NWP, will seek to develop the site at North Hoyle, off the coast between Rhyl and Prestatyn and has produced a brochure indicating that the turbines will have a total installed capacity of between 60 and 90 MW, which suggests 2 or 3MW turbines. It is not clear what the consents will include, as the sea is not protected by planning legislation. Presumably the MOD, aviation and marine interests will be consulted, and, in the light of the MOD's refusal to accept windfarms at Graigenlee and Humble Hill on the grounds of radar interference, it will be interesting to see what they have to say.

Are these offshore windfarms acceptable? Doubtless many of the visitors to these seaside resorts will enjoy the sea-trips around the windfarm and the "local Renewable Energy Centre for local people and tourists", and then go home till next year. Whether the locals will like the view every day of the year is a different matter, and there have already been protests from some of the resorts. Country Guardian has documented the environmental damage caused by onshore windfarms but the record offshore is still an unknown quantity.