SSE set to submit offshore plans for Arklow Bank Phase 2

UK utility SSE plc (LON:SSE) said today that this week it will file the third and final offshore planning consent application for its project to install 800 MW of wind power generation capacity in the Irish Sea.

After almost seven years of development work, paperwork will be submitted to Ireland’s planning authority An Bord Pleanala in connection with the offshore infrastructure required for the Arklow Bank Wind Park 2, planned as an extension to the 25-MW Arklow Bank station that was built 20 years ago.

The planning application proposes the installation of up to 56 wind turbines on steel monopile foundations. The machines will be located in an array area of around 63 square kilometers on and around the Arklow Bank off the Wicklow and Wexford coast.

The EUR-2.5-billion (USD 2.71bn) project has already secured planning consent for the development of an operations and maintenance base at Arklow Harbour as well as for the development of onshore cabling and a substation.

Construction works on Arklow Bank Wind Park 2 could start in 2026, subject to planning consent and a final investment decision by SSE. First power could be expected by 2029. Once fully operational, the station will be capable of powering around 850,000 homes annually.

Arklow Bank Wind Park 2 was awarded a maritime area consent (MAC) in December 2022.

(EUR 1 = USD 1.084)

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