SSE Renewables and Equinor, partners in the development of the 3.6GW Dogger Bank Wind Farm complex in the UK North Sea, have signed 15-year offtake Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) for the first two phases of what will be the world’s largest offshore wind farm.
Separate PPAs for a total of 2.4GW across both Dogger Bank Wind Farm A and B have been concluded with external off-takers Ørsted (40% share) and Shell Energy Europe Limited (20% share), and with sponsor off-takers Danske Commodities (20% share) on behalf of Equinor and SSE Energy Supply Limited (20% share) on behalf of SSE Renewables.
The agreements are subject to Financial Close on Dogger Bank A and Dogger Bank B, which is expected shortly.
The deals to buy the power generated by the first two phases of the wind farm following the conclusion of a competitive bidding process.
According to the wind farm developers, taken together, the deals represent the largest set of PPAs completed to date in a tender process for a renewable energy project in the UK energy market.
Ørsted will have trading and balancing responsibility for 960MW while Shell Energy Europe, SSE Energy Supply, and Danske Commodities will have responsibility for 480MW each of installed generation capacity across Dogger Bank A and B.
Steve Wilson, Dogger Bank Wind Farm’s Project Director at SSE Renewables, said the power offtake deals were one of final milestones ahead of reaching financial close soon for what will be the world’s biggest offshore wind farm.
"These agreements with leading energy trading companies will ensure the renewable energy generated by the first two phases of Dogger Bank Wind Farm can be sold into the GB electricity market, delivering on our promise to power millions of British households with green energy," Wilson said.
Dogger Bank Wind Farm is a joint venture between SSE Renewables, who are leading the construction of the offshore wind farm, and Equinor, who will operate the 3.6GW project during its lifetime of at least 25-years. When completed, Dogger Bank will be the world’s largest offshore wind farm.
The overall wind farm is being built in three consecutive 1.2GW phases; Dogger Bank A, Dogger Bank B, and Dogger Bank C. Each project is expected to generate around 6TWh of electricity annually.
Dogger Bank Wind Farm secured 3.6GW of offshore wind contracts in the UK Government’s 2019 Contracts for Difference (CfD) auctions. The CfDs awarded provide overall price certainty to each phase of Dogger Bank Wind Farm for a period of 15 years.
Dogger Bank Wind Farm is located over 130km off England’s north-east coast and will be capable of powering up to 4.5 UK million homes each year when complete in 2026.