World's biggest offshore wind farm opens

24 September 2010

Winds battering Britain off the Kent coast are to be harnessed by the world's biggest offshore wind farm which is now in operation.

The Thanet wind farm, which cost £780m and will produce sufficient power for 200,000 homes (300 megawatts), brings the UK's wind power capacity to over 5 gigawatts.

Energy Secretary Chris Huhne said at the official opening of the site: "We are an island nation and I firmly believe we should be harnessing our wind, wave and tidal resources to the maximum."

RenewableUK's chief executive Maria McCaffery welcomed the new wind farm, saying: "Five gigawatts is an important milestone because it takes us within reach of our 2020 targets, while proving that each successive gigawatt takes less and less time to deploy."