Go-ahead for 500 MW of wind turbines in Thames estuary

A wind farm with 140 turbines to supply 500 MW has been confirmed by Alistair Darling, Secretary of State for Trade & Industry. The Greater Gabbard scheme 23 km off the Suffolk coast has the potential to meet more than the entire demand of Suffolk and will cut carbon-dioxide emissions by 1.5 Mt a year. The project is being developed by two companies — Airtricity and Fluor. The site is close to two shallow sandbanks, the Inner Gabbard and the Galloper and will occupy an area of nearly 150 km2 within the Thames estuary strategic wind-farm area. The scheme will take UK wind-generation capacity to 2.5 GW, 1.5 GW of which has been achieved in the last 20 months, compared with over 10 years for the first 1 GW.