Harwich and Antwerp promote wind farm developments
At the beginning March Harwich International Port revealed that it had become involved in the Thanet offshore wind farm project. This is the latest in a series of wind farms being built around the UK’s coast. Situated 12km off Foreness Point in Kent, it will eventually consist of a total of 100 turbines.
This will be the third such project the port has supported, following previous operations for Gunfleet Sands and current work with Greater Gabbard.
David Gledhill, CEO of Hutchison Ports UK Ltd, which owns Harwich International Port, said: “Sustainable energy sources are of paramount importance, and as a company committed to monitoring and improving environmental issues we are pleased to be involved in the logistics chain for the construction of the Thanet Offshore Wind Farm. This latest project confirms that Harwich International has the right location, facilities, and expertise to support current, and future, wind farm developments.”
Thanet is being developed by Vattenfall of Sweden, Europe’s fifth largest generator of electricity. When complete, its turbines will be capable of generating 300MW of electricity, enough to supply about 240,000 homes per year with clean energy.
Meanwhile on the other side of the southern North Sea, Antwerp Port Authority and the Left Bank Corporation plan to build a large wind farm in the port area on the left bank of the Scheldt in collaboration with private partners.
The Flemish Wind Energy Association (VWEA) and the Flemish minister of energy Freya Van den Bossche recently selected the Antwerp seaport area as being an ideal location for installing large-scale wind turbines. The Port Authority and the Left Bank Corporation aim to make the maximum, most efficient use of wind turbines, in agreement with port users. All the relevant factors that could influence the development will be investigated in consultation with the operators concerned, and the first results will be announced in June. These will then be discussed with the port users and other stakeholders.
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