Walney Extension offshore wind farm, located in the Irish Sea, generates enough clean electricity to power nearly 600,000 homes. This massive feat of engineering was constructed on time and on budget and was inaugurated on the 6 September 2018.
Walney Extension is located approximately 19km (11.8 miles) west of Barrow-in-Furness off the northwest coast in the Irish Sea. The 659-megawatt (MW) project, owned by Ørsted (50%) and partners AIP Management and PFA, is situated next to the existing Walney wind farm and West of Duddon Sands offshore wind farm. Walney Extension brings Ørsted’s total capacity operating out of Barrow up to 1.5 gigawatts (GW), which is enough to power more than 1.2 million UK homes.
The wind farm is operated and maintained from our base in Barrow-in-Furness and supports more than 250 direct jobs in the region.
The project, our 11th operational offshore wind farm in the UK, held the title of the world’s largest offshore wind farm until sister project, Hornsea One took the crown in 2020. This record was broken once again by Hornsea Two offshore wind farm in August 2022.
Covering an area of 145km2, equal to around 20,000 football pitches or x10 Lake Windermere, the wind farm comprises 87 turbines. Deployment was split between two leading manufacturers, 40 MHI Vestas 8MW turbines and a further 47 Siemens Gamesa 7MW turbines – with blades manufactured in the UK (Hull and the Isle of Wight).
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Ørsted is playing a leading role in delivering the Offshore Wind Sector Deal, an ambitious partnership between the UK Government and the offshore wind industry that will see 50GW of offshore wind by 2030.
In addition to supporting the continued development of the UK’s offshore wind clusters, including the Humber, North Wales/North West and East Anglia, Ørsted is also involved in a number of collaborative business support programmes, which act as a catalyst for innovation and seek to leverage skills and capabilities from adjacent sectors. This includes the University of Hull’s Aura initiative, the Carbon Trust’s Offshore Wind Accelerator, Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult’s Fit For Offshore Renewables initiative and NOF Energy.
Images of Walney Extension
Our community grants help support local groups and organisations in the coastal regions where we construct and operate our offshore wind farms. Our three Community Benefit Funds — Burbo Bank Extension Community Fund, East Coast Community Fund and Walney Extension Community Fund — have so far awarded over £7 million to hundreds of local social and environmental projects along the East and West coasts.
The North-West region plays an important role in our UK offshore wind operations and our aim is to make a lasting and positive impact here. We want to ensure the local community benefits from the renewable energy revolution that’s happening along its coastline.
Our Walney Extension Community Fund has awarded over £3 million to 184 community projects in Cumbria and Lancashire since its launch in 2016. Each year, approximately £600,000 will be made available for community projects for the expected 25-year lifetime of the wind farm.
Our Funds are administered by independent grant-making charity GrantScape, with decision-making supported by local Advisory Groups made up of community specialists who benefit from a strong and deep understanding of the local community and environment.
