EDF Renewables UK partners with DP Energy to deliver up to 1 GW ‘Gwynt Glas’ floating offshore wind project in the Celtic Sea

EDF Renewables, one of the UK’s leading renewable energy companies, is announcing a joint venture partnership with international renewable project developer DP Energy, to generate up to 1GW of low carbon green energy in the Celtic Sea. The project is likely to span English and Welsh waters.

The floating offshore wind project called ‘Gwynt Glas’ will provide power for approximately 927,400 homes.* This will contribute a significant part of the Crown Estate’s ambitions for 4GW of capacity in the Celtic Sea as announced in October 2021.

Work including identification of a refined area of search and detailed constraint studies for the proposed location of the project are already underway. An area of interest encompassing some 1,500km2 has been identified, approximately 70km from the shore, with initial remote aerial surveys for marine mammal and birds taking place since Spring 2021. The project team will be consulting with key stakeholders and interested parties in the coming weeks to refine the proposed site location.

EDF Renewables UK Head of Offshore Wind Scott Sutherland said “This is a great start to 2022 for us and we are very pleased to announce this partnership with DP Energy. We firmly believe Gwynt Glas will be a catalyst for further supply chain growth across the UK which is something we as a company are very supportive of.

“We will use our experience in offshore wind to help bring opportunities for local, regional and national companies on this project and on others, such our Blyth floating project and the two we are bidding for in the ScotWind process.

“Floating offshore wind is an exciting new technology and will bring much needed inward investment which can regenerate coastal economies and communities.”

Simon De Pietro, CEO of DP Energy said “DP Energy’s 30-year approach to renewable project development puts the environment and local community front and centre. In our partners, we look for organisations that are as committed as we are to combating climate change.

“With EDF Renewables UK we have found a strong ally to develop Gwynt Glas, who place strong emphasis on capturing the regional supply chain and local community opportunity, alongside protecting our environment.

“Each member of the DP Energy UK team based in Pembroke Dock was born and raised in Wales and are passionate about supporting the growth of a new energy sector that can sustain skilled, well-paid jobs for future generations in coastal regions, in Wales and in the South West of England.”

Notes to editors:
* Load factors based on the five year rolling averages on unchanged configuration basis using Table 6.5 of 'Digest of UK Energy Statistics' - latest figures as per July 2020 release. Based upon the average domestic electricity consumption per home (temperature corrected) per the Energy Consumption in the UK (published July 2020, Table C9 of ECUK: Consumption data tables).

About EDF Renewables: EDF Renewables UK and Ireland is a subsidiary of EDF Group’s, one of the world’s largest low carbon electricity companies, and our investment and innovation is reducing costs for consumers and bringing significant benefits for communities.

With our operating portfolio of 37 renewable energy sites including battery, onshore and offshore wind (together totalling 1 GW) we are providing much needed affordable, low carbon electricity. We have an expanding portfolio with almost 5 GW of projects in planning and development, including wind, battery and solar PV.

About DP Energy: DP Energy has a long history of renewable project development and is a global developer of wind, solar and ocean energy projects across the UK, Ireland, Australia and North America.

To date DP has delivered multiple constructed renewable energy projects totalling over 700MW across the countries in which it operates. It has a further 400MW consented and proceeding to the ‘ready to build’ phase and a development pipeline of some 2GW of onshore wind and 3GW+ offshore wind.

Whilst headquartered in Ireland, DP Energy has operated extensively in the UK since the 1990s and early 2000s to deliver large scale onshore wind projects principally across Scotland, including Hadyard Hill wind farm which at 130MW was one of the largest projects of its day.

As part of its overall expansion plans DP Energy has now opened a UK South Wales office staffed by an experienced development team and this team, in addition to delivering the Gwynt Glas Offshore Wind farm will be developing a portfolio of 100% sustainable energy projects in the UK across the renewable technology range.

Contact:
Lindsey Southworth – 07813 230 379
Senior Manager – External Affairs
EDF Renewables UK
Lindsey.southworth@edf-re.uk

Ffion Wright - 07890636898
Stakeholder and Communications Manager
DP Energy
ffion.wright@dpenergy.com