Iberdrola to Invest £6 B in UK Offshore Wind Complex

Spanish electric utility Iberdrola, through its subsidiary Scottish Power, plans to invest £6 billion in developing an offshore wind complex – East Anglia Hub – in the UK, the company’s biggest investment anywhere in the world and one of the largest offshore wind projects worldwide.

Iberdrola’s chairman, Ignacio Galán, announced this undertaking at the Global Investment Summit organised by Prime Minister Boris Johnson just two weeks before the start of COP26 in Glasgow, the headquarters for ScottishPower, which is the main partner of this summit.

The chairman of the energy company confirmed that, subject to obtaining the necessary permits, this new investment package will join a record £10bn investment earmarked by the group in its 2020-2025 plan, enabling it to double its renewable generation capacity and drive decarbonisation in the United Kingdom.

“This meeting has given us the impetus we need to speed up the Net Zero commitments ahead of COP26”, explained Galán. “It also supports the British government’s plan to ramp up investment in ‘green’ industries, create jobs and growth and a cleaner, more environmentally friendly future”.

He added that “we are fully committed to fulfilling our role in this process, and our £6bn investment in East Anglia Hub will be a significant step toward ensuring that offshore wind is able to produce enough clean energy to power all the households in the UK by 2030.”

“The East Anglia Hub complex is an example of how companies can support the government’s Net Zero ambitions within a predictable, stable framework. This is what international investors need while we prepare for the COP26 climate change summit.”

“I have no doubt that this is just a taste of what is yet to come, as we continue to tackle the climate emergency, making progress with the energy transition and fighting for a net-zero emissions future.”

East Anglia Hub consists of three wind farms off the Suffolk coast: East Anglia ONE North, East Anglia TWO and East Anglia THREE. The complex, with an installed capacity of more than 3,000 MW, is expected to produce enough clean energy to supply the equivalent of more than 2.7 million households, contributing more than 7.5% to the target of 40,000 MW of installed power in the UK by 2030.

Currently, the East Anglia THREE project, with an installed power of 1,400 MW, has already secured planning permission. Likewise, planning permission applications for East Anglia ONE North (800 MW) and East Anglia TWO (900 MW) are being analysed by the Secretary of State at the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. Subject to the outcome of these considerations, it is expected that construction work on the East Anglia Hub will start in 2023 and will be complete by 2026.

Offshore wind energy is a key area of operation for Iberdrola. The group already operates more than 1,300 MW of installed capacity (Wikinger, East Anglia ONE and West of Duddon Sands) and has 2,600 MW under construction, which will triple its current capacity. Its portfolio of offshore wind projects exceeds 38,000 MW in traditional markets such as the UK, USA, Germany, France and new platforms in countries including Taiwan, Ireland, Japan, Sweden and Poland.