Race Bank Offshore Wind Farm officially opens

Race Bank is owned by Ørsted (50%), Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund 5 (25%), Sumitomo Corporation (12.5%) and funds advised by the Green Investment Group, Arjun Infrastructure Partners and Gravis Capital Management (12.5%).

Race Bank is capable of generating 573 megawatts (MW) of green electricity from its 91 Siemens Gamesa 6 MW wind turbines. Many of these turbines feature the first blades to be manufactured at the Siemens Gamesa blade factory in Hull.

The wind farm is located off the North Norfolk coast and is operated from Ørsted’s East Coast Hub in Grimsby, the UK’s largest offshore wind Operations and Maintenance (O&M) base. The project features a new way of carrying out offshore maintenance, using a state of the art Service Operation Vessel (SOV) that remains offshore with technicians working shifts of 14 days on and 14 days off.

Matthew Wright, Managing Director at Ørsted UK, said:

“Race Bank is a fantastic infrastructure project and underlines Ørsted’s contribution to the UK’s energy transition. It’s also another clear signal of our firm commitment to Grimsby and the Humber, and the UK supply chain for offshore wind. 

“Race Bank is a hugely significant and innovative project, featuring the first ever turbine blades to be made in Hull and becoming our first wind farm in the UK to be operated using a new Service Operation Vessel. It’s also one of the fastest projects we have ever built, with a fantastic safety record, and this is testament to the hard work of the project team and the great relationship we have with our partners.

“Powering over half a million homes every year, Race Bank is another positive step towards delivering the UK’s decarbonised energy system of the future.”

Hisayuki Doi, General Manager of the Global Renewable IPP Department at Sumitomo Corporation said:

”Sumitomo Corporation (SC) is particularly impressed by the quality and precision, how the Race Bank project has been realized; on time and budget, and most importantly: without any serious accidents.

“Race Bank is setting a new and very important milestone for SC towards a greener and more renewable portfolio.

“SC will further endeavor to explore the path towards a sustainable future, and SC is especially pleased of having the opportunity to walk along this path together with Orsted and Macquarie.”

Race Bank becomes the 10th UK offshore wind farm that Ørsted either owns and partly owns, and together these projects provide over 3,000 MW of green energy – enough to power 2.7 million UK homes.

Ørsted has worked closely with a number of important UK suppliers on the Race Bank project. These include J Murphy, working on the onshore substation and onshore export cable installation, as well as cable manufacturers JDR and installation specialists DeepOcean, both based in Teesside.

Ørsted has reinforced its commitment to the Grimsby and Humber area by accepting a position on the Great Grimsby Partnership Board. This programme has been supported by UK Government through the recent announcement of a pilot Town Deal in the Industrial Strategy White Paper.

Ørsted has also invested in the community through its East Coast Community Fund, sponsorships such as the Ørsted Great Grimsby 10K and a partnership with Teach First to address educational inequalities in the region.

Facts about Race Bank Offshore Wind Farm:

• Owned by Ørsted (50%), Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund 5 (25%), Sumitomo Corporation (12.5%) and funds advised by the Green Investment Group, Arjun Infrastructure Partners and Gravis Capital Management (12.5%).
  
  
• Located approximately 16.8 miles off Blakeney Point on the North Norfolk coast and 17.4 miles off the Lincolnshire coast at Chapel St Leonards
  
  
• Covers a total area of 75km2
  
  
• Consists of 91 Siemens Gamesa 6 MW turbines
  
  
• Total capacity of 573 MW, producing enough electricity to power over half a million UK homes annually