Vattenfall acquired the Thanet Offshore Wind Farm project in November 2008. Construction was completed September 2010. There are 100 Vestas V90 wind turbines that have a total capacity of 300 MW. This is sufficient to supply more than 200,000 homes per year with clean energy.
It is the largest operational offshore wind farm anywhere in the world. It will make a significant contribution to the Government’s national and regional renewable energy targets.
The Thanet project is located approximately 12 km off Foreness Point, the most eastern part of Kent. Some elements of the onshore construction work commenced at the former Richborough power station in January 2008 where the onshore substation is located.
- The Thanet Wind Farm islocated in water depths of 20-25m and cover an area of 35km2. - There will be 100 turbines generating a total of 300MW of renewable electricity, enough to power more than 200,000 homes. - The nearest turbine will be located approx 12km north east of Foreness Point. - Each turbine is 115m tall at its highest point, with a minimum clearance above sea level of 22m. - The distance between turbines is approximately 500m along rows and 800m between rows.
The Thanet wind farm will only hold the title of world's largest for a short time though. Two larger offshore wind farms are currently under construction -- the Greater Gabbard project with a 500 MW capacity and the London Array project with a 1 GW capacity -- but both of those will reside in the UK, meaning it will continue to be a world leader in offshore wind.
The UK has set a target of generating 15 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2020. These large projects should help them to get there.
