Triton Knoll

Location and Context

• The Triton Knoll Wind Farm is located approximately 33 kilometres (21 miles) off the coast of Lincolnshire in the North Sea, England, within the Greater Wash Strategic Area.

Ownership and Development

• The project is jointly owned by RWE (59%), J-Power (25%), and Kansai Electric Power (16%).
• The development area was initially awarded to RWE Npower Renewables by the Crown Estate in 2003 as part of the Round 2 offshore wind farm development sites.

Capacity and Turbines

• The wind farm has an installed capacity of 857 megawatts (MW), making it one of the world's largest offshore wind farms.
• It consists of 90 MHI Vestas V164-9.5 MW turbines. Each turbine has a maximum tip height of up to 220 meters, a hub height of 140 meters, and a rotor diameter of 180 meters.

Construction and Milestones

• The planning application for the offshore elements was submitted in 2012 and approved in July 2013 for a wind farm of up to 1200 MW. However, the scope was later reduced to between 600 and 900 MW to reduce costs.
• Onshore construction began in September 2018, and offshore construction commenced in January 2020. The first turbine was installed in January 2021, and the first power was generated on 1 March 2021. The final turbine was installed by 17 September 2021, and turbine commissioning was completed by January 2022.
• The project achieved full operational status in the first quarter of 2022.

Electrical Infrastructure

• The wind farm is connected to the UK National Grid via four export cables and six onshore cables. The turbines are linked to offshore substations by buried intra-array cables. A 37-mile onshore cable connects the wind farm from Anderby Creek to the Bicker Fen substation near Boston, Lincolnshire.
• The electrical system includes an onshore substation, underground cables, and offshore export cables. Consent for the electrical system was granted on 3 September 2016.

Environmental and Operational Considerations

• Offshore and onshore environmental surveys were completed in 2008 and 2009, respectively. The project includes up to five meteorological masts for wind data collection.
• Pile driving was restricted during the Herring spawning season (September to mid-October) without prior permission.
• A decommissioning program is in place, with consultation on the draft program completed in January 2019.

Financial and Economic Impact

• The project represents an investment of approximately £2 billion, which includes construction of the wind farm and the grid connection. Financial closure was achieved in August 2018 with a consortium of international banks providing financing.
• The wind farm is expected to generate enough electricity to meet the needs of around 800,000 to 935,000 average UK households annually.

Local Impact and Jobs

• The project has created new local jobs, including around 60 new jobs at the Grimsby Hub facility, which will support both existing and future RWE-operated projects. Additional investments include a new operations base in Grimsby, generating up to 70 new skilled jobs locally.

Power Purchase Agreement

• Ørsted signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with innogy (a subsidiary of RWE) in August 2018 to offtake 100% of the power generated by the wind farm for a term of 15 years.