First blades for Race Bank offshore wind farm

Race Bank is located off the North Norfolk coast and is being built out of DONG Energy's construction base in the Grimsby Fish Docks. The installation of the blades and the rest of the turbines is on track to start up in summer 2017.
 
The Siemens blade factory in Hull officially opened on 1 December 2016.
 
Brent Cheshire, DONG Energy's UK Country Chairman, said: "DONG Energy is absolutely committed to investing in the UK so I'm delighted we will be the first company to use Siemens blades manufactured right here in Hull. The opening of this Siemens blade factory is another positive step forward for the UK supply chain.
 
"Race Bank is a significant project capable of powering over half a million homes a year and is being constructed from our base in Grimsby. To have blades manufactured down the road in Hull really underlines the great success story of offshore wind in this country."
 
Approximately two thirds (around 180) of the blades at Race Bank will come from the Siemens facility in Hull. The wind farm is expected to be fully operational in 2018.
 
Blades being manufactured in Hull is only one part of a dedicated focus by DONG Energy and Race Bank to use local suppliers where relevant and this includes the array cables – which connect each of the wind turbines to the main export cable that transmits electricity back to shore – where three different UK companies have been contracted.
 
In September, DONG Energy also announced plans for a £multi-million investment in Grimsby to create the UK's largest offshore wind operations and maintenance hub.
 
Facts about Race Bank offshore wind farm:
• 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 6 megawatt (MW) turbines.
• Total capacity of up to 580MW, producing enough electricity to power over half a million UK homes annually.