Dogger Bank partners to build new UK operations base

The Port of Tyne, located in the northeast of England, is the new O&M base for the offshore wind farm Dogger Bank (Source: Port of Tyne)
Norwegian state energy firm Equinor and partner SSE Renewables, a UK-listed company specialising in low-carbon energy, have announced plans to build a new operations and maintenance (O&M) base at the Port of Tyne.
The facility will service Dogger Bank, a 3.6-GW offshore wind farm in the North Sea, the world’s largest so far. The wind farm will be developed in three 1.2-GW phases and, at full capacity, will supply enough electricity for more than 4.5 million UK homes.
The base will support the efficient operation of the wind farm during its working life of more than 25 years. Construction began in January and the facility will create more than 200 jobs directly, as well as a range of other commercial opportunities for service and supply chain companies in the future.
Commenting on the choice of locations for the base, Equinor’s senior vice president for North Sea New Energy Solutions, commented: “The North East has a strong industrial heritage and a supply area that stretches north and south of the River Tyne. With a strong low-carbon vision for the future, as well as targets to become net zero in its own operations by 2030, the Port of Tyne is clearly well set up to attract future investments which we hope will complement our activities.”
About GBP 9 billion is likely to be invested in the Dogger Bank wind farm project between now 2020 and 2026, the companies said.