Gwynt y Mor

Gwynt y Môr Offshore Wind Farm Profile

Location

• Gwynt y Môr is located in the Irish Sea, off the coast of north Wales, approximately 13 to 15 kilometers from the shore. It is specifically situated near Liverpool Bay, with the nearest points being 16 kilometers from Llandudno and 18 kilometers from the Wirral.

Capacity and Size

• The wind farm has a total capacity of 576 megawatts (MW) and is one of the largest operating offshore wind farms in the world, ranking as the fifth largest globally.
• It covers an area of approximately 79 square kilometers (or 124 square kilometers as per the lease area defined by the Crown Estate).

Ownership and Development

• The project is owned and developed by a joint venture consisting of RWE Innogy (50%), Stadtwerke München (30%), and Siemens (10%), with the UK Green Investment Bank also holding a 10% stake.
• The development rights were allocated as part of the Crown Estate’s second Round of UK offshore wind farm development (Round 2).

Turbines and Infrastructure

• The wind farm comprises 160 Siemens SWT-3.6-107 wind turbines, each rated at 3.6 MW. The turbines have a rotor diameter of 107 meters, a hub height of 84.4 meters, and an overall height to the blade tip of 137.9 meters (or 150 meters above mean sea level).
• The turbines are supported by monopile foundations, each consisting of a 5-meter diameter steel tube measuring 50 to 70 meters in length and weighing between 500 to 700 tons.

Construction and Timeline

• Planning consent for the project was granted on December 3, 2008.
• Construction began in January 2012, with offshore work starting in January 2011 when rock was laid on softer parts of the seabed to secure the turbine foundations. The installation of turbines started in the fourth quarter of 2011, and the first turbine was installed in May 2013.
• Power production began in September 2013, and the construction phase was completed in November 2014. Final commissioning of the wind farm occurred on June 18, 2015.

Electrical Infrastructure

• The wind farm uses four 132 kV subsea cables to transmit power from the turbines to offshore substations. From there, the power is transmitted to an onshore substation at St Asaph in Denbighshire via 20 kilometers of offshore export cables and 12 kilometers of onshore export cables. The power is then fed into the 400 kV national grid.

Environmental Impact and Benefits

• The wind farm generates enough clean energy to power approximately 467,000 to 500,000 households, which is equivalent to around 30% to 40% of all Welsh households or about 2% of all UK households.
• It prevents the release of about 1.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year, contributing significantly to the UK's renewable energy targets.

Cost and Investment

• The project has a total value of €2 billion (approximately $2.43 billion), with €1.2 billion allocated to Siemens for turbines and electrical connections.

Future Expansion

• In May 2020, plans were submitted to Flintshire Council to add up to 107 new turbines, increasing the wind farm by an extra 41 square miles and adding at least 100 MW of generating capacity.

Other Details

• The water depths at the site range from 12 to 34 meters at low water (LAT, Lowest Astronomical Tide).
• The project includes two floating experimental LIDAR wind measurement stations that were tested at the site for two years.
• The levelised cost of the project has been estimated at £179/MWh.