Isle of Man partners with DONG Energy to develop offshore wind farm

The Isle of Man government’s Department of Infrastructure has signed an agreement with DONG Energy to develop a wind farm to generate offshore wind energy from the resources available in the Island.

Under the deal, DONG Energy will develop a wind farm in Manx waters off the north east coast of the Island.

Initially, DONG will undertake preliminary surveys to find out the practicality and commercial viability of setting up the wind turbines within the 12-mile radius of the Island’s territorial sea.

In order to meet the challenges in the energy sector, the Isle of Man is working with the UK and the latest deal is one of the strategies of the government’s long-term economic growth plan.

The proposed renewable energy farm is expected to create more local jobs and reduce carbon emissions.

Isle of Man Government infrastructure Minister Phil Gawne said: "The opportunities for renewable energy in Manx territorial waters are significant.

"The ambition of the industry is matched by a commitment from the Isle of Man Government to maximise the vast potential of the Irish Sea’s clean energy resources.

"DONG Energy is a world-renowned company with a strong track record of achievement in the development of offshore wind farms."

Recently, the company had announced its plan to build the world’s biggest offshore wind farm in the Irish Sea off the coast of Cumbria.

DONG Energy UK wind power vice president and asset management head Benj Sykes said: "We are pleased to sign this Agreement for Lease with the Isle of Man Government, which allows us to carry out the necessary investigations to check whether we can progress our plans to build an offshore wind farm off the east coast of the Isle of Man.

"We are still very much in the early stages, but this agreement means we can move forward with assessing vital factors, such as wind speeds and ground conditions, critical to determining the viability of the project."

In order to develop the proposals, the Department of Infrastructure is working closely with the Department of Economic Development, the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture and Treasury.