PRESS RELEASE ,July 17th 2006

Thanet Offshore Wind Limited (TOW), a subsidiary of Warwick Energy Limited, has chosen Vestas Offshore A/S (Vestas) as the preferred supplier of wind turbines for the 300MW Thanet project. Vestas will supply 100 of their 3.0MW rated, V90 turbines for the project.

Vestas will also supply the towers for each turbine and will install both the turbines and towers in the summer of 2008. Vestas and TOW will now be working together over the next few months on detailed designs and programme for the project.

The award to Vestas is subject to the finalisation and agreement on the detailed terms and conditions for delivery of turbines in 2008. Full contract signature will depend, amongst other things, on receipt of development consents and overall project viability. Applications for consent for the project were submitted in November 2005 and are still under consideration.

Tenders have been issued for all the other major contracts, chiefly for the turbine foundations and for the electrical works including cabling and offshore substation. This selection of a preferred supplier for the key turbine element of the project should now also help bring these other discussions to a conclusion over the next few months.

 

 

 

NOTES TO EDITORS:

1. In January 2004, Warwick Energy announced plans to develop an offshore wind farm more than 11 km to the North East of the Thanet coast in East Kent. The company received exclusive rights to the site under an agreement with The Crown Estate. The project would include up to 100 wind turbine generators producing on average enough electricity to supply 240,000 homes with green electricity.

2. During 2004 and 2005 TOW conducted a large number of surveys and studies on the site, consistent with the Scoping Report submitted in July 2004. The results of these studies formed the basis for the Environmental Statement (ES) that accompanied the application for consents.

3. The public exhibitions, conducted in June 2005, were attended by 731 people of whom 400 (55%) returned a questionnaire, either at the exhibitions or afterwards by post, which provided feedback to the scheme as shown below. Of the responses received, 43% were strongly supportive of the proposed scheme, 30% supportive, 20% undecided, 2% against and 5% strongly against. Analysis of the reasons given for being against the project reveals that most were based on the potential navigational risks, visual impact of the wind turbines from the shore or the potential impact on the local bird population. The ES demonstrated that any impact in these areas, as a consequence of the development, would be negligible.

4. It is expected that electricity generation from offshore wind farms, such as this one at Thanet, will make a significant contribution towards the UK’s target of producing 15% of its energy needs from renewable sources by 2015. The project will avoid CO2 emissions of between 0.6 and 1 million tonnes per year, depending on whether the electricity produced displaces gas or coal fired generation.

5. Warwick Energy’s wind farm project at Thanet is one of 15 projects announced by the Crown Estate in January 2004 as a second national Round of offshore wind projects. Other ‘Round 2’ projects being proposed by other companies in the Thames area are those called London Array and Greater Gabbard. The Kentish Flats wind farm off Whitstable, commissioned in 2005, was part of the first Round of demonstrator wind farm projects launched by the Crown Estate in early 2001.

 

Contacts: Mark Petterson Director, Warwick Energy 01789 471091

Warwick Energy Limited, Wellesbourne House, Wellesbourne, Warwick, CV35 9JB