RWE, Germany’s leading power company, announced on Tuesday that it has decided to pull the plug on plans to build a wind farm along Britain’s West Coast in the Britain Channel.
Named the Atlantic Array, the wind farm would have been the one of the largest wind farms in the world. It would have consisted of 240 wind turbines that would have generated 1,200 megawatts of power. That would have been enough energy to power 900,000 homes.
The project faced determined opposition from environmental groups. Environmentalists were concerned about the projects impact on marine wildlife.
RWE says that the project presented significant challenges including deep waters and adverse seabed conditions. After review the company decided to focus on offshore projects that are more technically and economically viable.
image via www.telegraph.co.uk
"In comparison with other opportunities in the British offshore wind portfolio, and in light of the significant technical challenges specific to the zone, identified from intensive research, at the current time, it is not viable for RWE to continue with development in the Bristol Channel zone," RWE said in a statement.
RWE’s head of offshore wind, Paul Cowling added, "This is not a decision we have taken lightly, however given the technological challenges and market conditions, now is not the right time for RWE to continue to progress with this project.We will continue to focus on the other less technically challenging offshore projects. Offshore wind remains one of the strategic objectives for RWE and Britain has a major role to play within our portfolio.”
A spokesman for the Department of Energy and Climate Change said, "The decision not to proceed with the development is a matter for RWE. It was made on purely technical grounds and reflects the many complex challenges of constructing offshore wind farms.The UK still expects to deploy significant amounts of offshore wind by 2020 and we remain well placed to meet our 2020 renewable energy target."
Edited by Ryan Sartor