Construction of the West of Duddon Sands offshore windfarm approved

The project will be located 14km southwest of the Barrow-in-Furness coastline, with work commencing in early 2012, initially with construction of the required onshore connections. When completed, the windfarm will be able to provide power for approximately 300,000 homes.

Foundations for the turbines will be laid in early summer 2013 and the project is expected to be fully completed in 2014.

The installation and pre-assembly operations shall largely be run out of Belfast Harbour, which stands to benefit from significant upgrade works, making it one of the first bespoke offshore wind installation and pre-assembly harbours in the UK. This marks a significant investment and creates a large number of jobs in Belfast, during the construction of the harbour and then its use as a pre-assembly facility. The operational base for the windfarm will be the Port of Barrow, which is also being used for the operation of several other offshore windfarms in the East Irish Sea.