World’s largest wind farm launched off Yorkshire coast

Danish firm Ørsted has created the world’s biggest fully-operation wind farm in the North Sea, 55 miles off the Yorkshire coast.

The launch of the 1.3 GW Hornsea 2 project will produce enough energy to power 1.4 million homes, helping the security and resilience of the UK’s energy supply.

Ørsted’s UK chief Duncan Clark, said the project would reduce costs for consumers by avoiding the reliance on expensive fossil fuels.

The Hornsea 2 project will supply electricity to the UK via almost 400km of subsea cables that come onshore at Horseshoe Point near Grimsby.

Every revolution of the turbine’s blades produces enough electricity to power an average UK home for 24 hours.

And the launch of the windfarm sits in line with UK government plans to bring online 50 GW of offshore wind capacity by 2030.  

Ørsted is now planning to break records by building a third, 2.8 GW windfarm in the 2,000 square meter Hornsea Area, called Hornsea 3. Hornsea 1 (pictured) became commercially operational in 2020 and is now the largest offshore wind farm in the world! It is double the size of the previous record holder, Walney Extension and can power well over one million UK homes.

Hornsea 2 is the 13^th offshore windfarm Ørsted has launched in UK waters. The firm is currently building a further 2 GW and has plans to build another 11 GW, including the Hornsea 3 project.  

Clark added: “The UK is truly a world leader in offshore wind and the completion of Hornsea 2 is a tremendous milestone for the offshore wind industry, not just in the UK but globally. 

“Current global events highlight more than ever the importance of landmark renewable energy projects like Hornsea 2.”