Equinor has signed Agreements for Lease (AfL) with The Crown Estate for two offshore wind farm extensions in the UK. Sheringham Extension and Dudgeon Extension are part of The Crown Estate’s 2017 Offshore Wind Extensions opportunity which aims to unlock additional capacity in the UK offshore wind portfolio by extending existing offshore wind farms.
Last year, both proposals progressed through the plan level Habitats Regulations Assessment stage (HRA), which assesses the possible impact of the proposed wind farm extensions on relevant nature conservation sites of European importance. Now, both of Equinor’s proposed wind farm extensions have officially signed an Agreement for Lease, securing an area of seabed of approximately 196km2 in total.
The company currently operates two wind farms off the Norfolk Coast, Dudgeon and Sheringham Shoal. Equinor is developing plans to extend both sites, doubling the total capacity from its Norfolk operations to over 1400 MW. Although these are two separate offshore wind farm extension projects, Equinor has adopted a strategic approach and is developing the projects jointly.
