Offshore wind

Why we need offshore wind?

Climate change is one of the biggest challenges the world faces. It is affecting every country and we must all play a role in helping to combat it.

This project can play an important part in the energy transition by delivering a significant volume of offshore wind in support of the Welsh and UK Governments' targets.

The UK is a world leader in offshore wind and the seas around us are ideal for harnessing wind power. Our project will be operational by 2030 and will play a key role in tackling climate change by:

  • Generating low carbon electricity from an offshore wind farm in support of the decarbonisation and security of the UK electricity supply.
  • Optimising generation capacity within the constraints of available sites and grid infrastructure.
  • Delivering a significant volume of offshore wind in support of the UK Government's Net Zero by 2050 target and commitment to deliver up to 50 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind by 2030.
  • Co-existing and collaborating with other activities, developers and operators to enable the balance of different users.

This project will also:

  • Contribute to achieving the aims of the UK's Energy Security Strategy.
  • Contribute to the local, regional and national economy by providing substantial investment, as well as employment and new infrastructure during all phases of the project.
  • Continue to drive technology and development costs down to provide low-cost energy to consumers and provide community benefits.
  • Align with the key drivers in current and planned updates to national policy in Wales and the UK.

The UK already generates around 15GW of its power from offshore wind. It plays an increasingly important role in our energy mix. Wind power represents around a third (30%) of total UK electricity generation. And, in the last quarter of 2023, wind generated more power than gas for the first time in history.

This is impressive progress, but we need to go a lot further. To achieve our climate goals, we need to almost quadruple our offshore wind generation, meaning we need up to 50GW of generating capacity installed and operating by 2030.

How do offshore wind farms work?

What are wind turbine generators?

These are devices that convert the kinetic energy of wind to electrical energy. For more information on the likely design of the wind turbine generators for the Morgan Offshore Wind Project, please see Volume 1, Chapter 3: Project Description of the Environmental Statement (ES) here.

Wind turbine generator
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Indicative diagram of what a typical wind generator could look like. Actual design may differ.

What are Offshore Substation Platforms (OSPs)?

These are fixed structures that would be located within the wind farm site. The purpose of these structures is to convert the power from the wind turbine generators into a form ready to be transferred to shore.

Offshore Substation Platforms
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Indicative image of what a typical OSP could look like. Actual design may differ.

What are interconnector cables?

These are electrical cables that link one or more OSPs.

What are inter-array cables?

These are cables that link the wind turbine generators to each other and the OSPs.