About - Sofia Offshore Wind Farm

ABOUT SOFIA

Sofia will be one of the largest offshore wind farms in the world as well as one of the farthest from shore. Technically it will be a major engineering feat, drawing on long-term offshore wind heritage and on our suppliers’ technological expertise. It will implement many of the innovations and advances made by the offshore wind sector as it has grown in size and sophistication over the past few years.

FACTS & FIGURES

1.4GW

Installed capacity

The largest project in RWE's offshore wind portfolio

593km²

Site size

Roughly the same size as the Isle of Man

100

Number of turbines

Each 14MW capacity

252m

Turbine height

To the tip of the rotor blade

35m

Deepest water depth

At the wind farm site on Dogger Bank

20m

Shallowest water depth

The same height as the Angel of the North

195km

Distance to North East coast

To the nearest point on the North East coastline

220km

Distance to landfall

To the connection point between Redcar and Marske-by-the-Sea

1.2 million

Number of UK homes

That could be powered by electricity generated by Sofia

KEY BENEFITS

Sofia Offshore Wind Farm is a significant economic opportunity for the UK with potential supply chain benefits, and associated direct and indirect jobs and contracts. It represents an almost £3 billion investment in the UK’s electricity infrastructure. By working collaboratively and innovatively with competitive UK suppliers it is expected that Sofia’s UK content will exceed 50% over the life time of the wind farm.

The total amount of power Sofia is likely to generate would be enough to potentially provide almost 1.2 million average UK homes with their annual electricity needs. At around 6 TWh per annum that’s almost half of all the electricity used in the North East each year. (Digest of UK Energy Statistics, December 2018)

Sofia achieved the lowest ever strike price for offshore wind in the 2019 UK Contracts for Difference auction. At £39.65 per megawatt hour, offshore wind is currently the cheapest source of new electricity in the UK. The technology is set to be the backbone of the UK’s clean, modern energy system and the biggest contributor towards meeting the nation’s net-zero emissions target.

Once operational, the energy generated by Sofia's turbines will save more than 2.5 million tonnes of carbon emissions* per year when compared to the use of fossil fuels in the UK.

* Using BEIS’s “all fossil fuels” emissions statistic of 446 tonnes of carbon dioxide per GWh of electricity supplied in the Digest of UK Energy Statistics (July 2020)

OWNER

Sofia Offshore Wind Farm is currently 100% owned by RWE. In line with the company’s strategy for offshore wind, it is likely investment partners will be sought when the project is sufficiently matured.

THE STORY SO FAR

2009

In 2009, RWE joined forces with three other leading international energy companies - SSE, Statoil (now Equinor) and Statkraft - to bid for a Zone Development Agreement as part of The Crown Estate’s third licence round for UK offshore wind farms (Round 3).

January 2010

In January 2010, following a competitive tender process, The Crown Estate announced that Forewind had been awarded development rights for the largest zone: Dogger Bank.

2015

In 2015 the Secretary of State awarded development consent orders to four projects, each with a proposed installed capacity of 1.2GW. These were Dogger Bank Creyke Beck A, Dogger Bank Creyke Beck B, Dogger Bank Teesside A and Dogger Bank Teesside B.

March 2017

In early (March) 2017, Statkraft decided to leave Forewind. SSE and Equinor took the opportunity to increase their shares to 37.5% each, with RWE (innogy) retaining a 25% share.

August 2017

In August 2017, the remaining three Forewind partners agreed on how best to further progress the development of the four consented projects, with RWE taking full ownership and control of Dogger Bank Teesside B. SSE and Equinor together progress the other three projects.

December 2017

Dogger Bank Teesside B was re-named Sofia via an internal competition and in December 2017, the new name Sofia Offshore Wind Farm was registered at Companies House.

2019

The year 2019 saw two major successes: when an application to increase the installed capacity to 1.4GW was approved and when the project won a Contract for Difference in the UK Government's competitive auction round, greenlighting the team to progress the project.

June 2020

A preferred supplier agreement is signed with Siemens Gamesa for 100 of their recently launched SG 14-222 DD turbines.

July 2020

Sofia announces its preferred suppliers for the HVDC transmission system are GE's Grid Solutions and Sembcorp Marine.

Late 2020

Two further preferred supplier agreements introduced three installation vessels to the project. Prysmian's brand new Leonardo da Vinci is lined up to install the export cables, with Van Oord's Aeolus set to install the 100 extended monopile foundations, and Nexus due to install the 350 kilometres of array cables.

24 March 2021

Sofia achieves a positive financial investment decision from RWE. Contracts with key component suppliers are signed shortly afterwards.

June 2021

Sofia is now under construction, with the enabling works underway at the onshore converter station site in Teesside (along with those for neighbouring project Dogger Bank C).

Sept 2021

Ceremony to mark the first steel cutting of Sofia's offshore converter platform in Batam, Indonesia

Jan 2022

Jones Bros Civil Engineering completes the load-bearing stone platform for the converter station and associated civils works in readiness for the arrival of GE's Grid Solutions' chosen contractor.

February 2022

New contractors were announced namely: Hellenic for the array cables, Kier Infrastructure for the onshore converter station and J. Murphy & Sons for the onshore cable civil works.

April 2022

A 'first spade in the ground' event marked the official start of construction of Sofia's onshore converter station. Seen here are senior managers from Sofia, GE's Grid Solutions and Kier Infrastructure at the Teesside site.

August 2022

Sofia’s unexploded ordnance and archaeology campaign was safely and successfully completed, clearing the way for the start of offshore construction in 2023.