SSE Renewables and Equinor, which own the Dogger Bank A, B and C offshore wind farms through a consortium that also comprises Vårgrønn, have now launched a public consultation period on the Dogger Bank D proposals that runs until 7 November.
The consultation will provide the opportunity for the community to find out more about the project, ask questions, and share feedback that will help refine plans for the project and guide further development of the proposals ahead of its potential application to the Planning Inspectorate and Secretary of State for a Development Consent Order (DCO) as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project.
A second phase of consultation is planned for summer 2024.
The developers have already held several meetings with the Planning Inspectorate and submitted a scoping report in April this year, with an opinion on the report adopted this June. In May, SSE Renewables and Equinor, through a company named Gatroben Developments 2 Limited, also filed for an electricity generation licence with Ofgem and were granted the licence on 20 July.
The two companies’ plans to add the fourth phase to the 3.6 GW project made headlines last year as the Dogger Bank Wind Farm, already being the world’s largest offshore wind farm under construction, would become even larger.
As reported in October 2022, the potential fourth phase was planned to have an installed capacity of 1.32 GW. In a press release announcing the start of the public consultation, SSE Renewables and Equinor said that Dogger Bank D could have a generation capacity of up to around 2 GW, subject to further technical studies.
The 2 GW offshore wind farm is currently planned to comprise 128 wind turbines and up to six offshore platforms.
The site where Dogger Bank D would be built is located some 210 kilometres off the northeast coast of England, in the eastern zone of the Dogger Bank C lease area.
The project development team is exploring different opportunities to utilise the energy that could be produced by Dogger Bank D, including supplying electricity to UK consumers and producing green hydrogen.
