Rampion Wind Farm

Wind farm off the Sussex coast

Rampion Offshore Wind Farm

Country|

* United Kingdom

Location| English Channel, off the coast of Sussex
Coordinates| 50°39′53″N 0°16′44″W﻿ / ﻿50.6647°N 0.2789°W﻿ / 50.6647; -0.2789
Status| Operational
Construction began| 2015[1]
Commission date|

* November 2017

Construction cost| £1.3 billion
Owners|

* Enbridge
* Green Investment Group
* RWE AG

Operator|

* RWE AG

Wind farm
Type|

* Offshore

Distance from shore| 13 km (8.1 mi)
Hub height| 80 m (262.5 ft)
Rotor diameter|

* 112 m (367 ft)

Site area| 72 km2 (27.8 sq mi)
Power generation
Units operational| 116 × 3.45 MW
Make and model| MHI Vestas V112-3.45 MW (116)
Nameplate capacity|

* 400 MW

External links
Website| www.rampionoffshore.com
Commons| Related media on Commons

[edit on Wikidata]

Wind farm layout

Rampion is an offshore wind farm developed by E.ON, now operated by RWE, off the Sussex coast in the UK. The wind farm has a capacity of 400 MW, although 700 MW was originally planned.[2] The wind farm was commissioned in April 2018 and was the first offshore wind farm on the south coast of England.[3][4]

## Location

[edit]

Located between 13 and 25 km (8 and 16 miles) from the shore, the wind farm is situated off the coast of the towns of Worthing and Shoreham-by-Sea to the west, the city of Brighton and Hove in the centre and the towns of Newhaven and Seaford in the east. The wind farm lies in a zone that is an irregular elongated area, approximately 28 km (17 miles) in an east to west direction and approximately 10 km (6.2 miles) in the north to south direction, an area of 72 km2 (27.8 square miles).[2][5]

## Name

[edit]

Flowers of the round-headed rampion, or Pride of Sussex, the county flower of Sussex

Initially known as Zone 6 off the Sussex coast,[6] it was later named the "Southern Array" (Hastings).

When the site of the wind farm was changed from near Hastings to off Brighton, E.ON held a competition with local schools to suggest a new name as a public relations exercise. The name Rampion was voted the winning suggestion, submitted by Davison High School Pupil Megan McCullough, after the round-headed rampion (Phyteuma orbiculare), also known as the Pride of Sussex,[7] the county flower of Sussex.[6]

## Planning and construction

[edit]

E.ON's final plans use 116 turbines of approximately 3.45 MW capacity, each 140 m (459.3 ft) high to the tip of the blade, blade length is 55 m (180 ft), and radius is 12 m (39 ft),[2] which represents a 43% reduction in the size of the development after planning consent was granted.[8]

E.ON originally proposed using either 175 smaller turbines of 3–3.6 MW capacity, each 180 m (590.6 ft) above low tide sea level, or 100 larger turbines of 7 MW capacity, each 210 m (689.0 ft) above sea level.[6] Development and construction costs were estimated at £2 billion.[6] As the turbines are designed to last approximately 20–25 years,[6] and since E.ON's lease of the site from the Crown Estate is for 50 years, the company would eventually need to replace the turbines.[6]

After an 18-month evaluation process between Newhaven and Shoreham ports, E.ON chose Newhaven as the base for its operations and maintenance facility. The company took a lease on a site at the Port of Newhaven, where it constructed two new buildings to house the administration and engineering functions of the wind farm. The site and associated buildings act as the combined servicing point for the wind farm.[9]

The project was approved by the government in July 2014.[10] In November 2014, E.ON announced that it had reduced the proposed capacity of the project by approximately 40%.[2] Onshore construction work began in June 2015 with construction of a new electricity substation adjacent to the existing National Grid Bolney 400/132 kV substation[6] near Twineham.[11] Off shore the 116 monopile foundations were piled into the sea bed and on completion of this the first wind turbine was lifted into place in March 2017. Coincident with this was the ongoing work to backfill the cable duct trenches off Lancing beach initially due to be completed in Spring 2017.[12] Installation of the remainder of the 150 kV cable through to Bolney and the burying in the sea bed of the 33 kV inter array cables was also completed during this time following the installation of a 2,000-tonne offshore 33/150 kV substation that was completed in April 2017.[13] An excavator was stranded and disabled after completing cable trench backfilling work in April 2017;[14][15] it was removed in June 2017.[16] Electricity production commenced during November 2017.[17] Construction of the wind farm was completed in 2018 at a cost of £1.3 billion.[11][3]

In 2020, Rampion exceeded its power generation targets by generating 1,600 GWh over the year, 15% more than the assumed annual generation of 1,400 GWh and resulting in an average power output of 183 MW.[18]

## Rampion 2

[edit]

Rampion 2 is a proposed second wind farm to the immediate south west of the current Rampion installation. Plans include larger wind turbines compared with the first Rampion wind farm, expected to stand up to 325 m (1,066 ft) above the highest tide and producing up to 1,200 MW of power. If plans are approved construction could start in 2027, and the site could be operational by 2030.[19]

In September 2023, the Planning Inspectorate accepted the application for examination.[20]

On 4 April 2025, Rampion 2 was granted development consent by the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero.[21]

## See also

[edit]

* England portal
* Weather portal
* Renewable energy portal

* List of offshore wind farms in the United Kingdom
* Wind power in the United Kingdom

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Development and construction history | History".
2. ^ a b c d "E.ON announces final 116 turbine design for Rampion Offshore Wind Farm". E.ON. Archived from the original on 27 November 2014. Retrieved 16 December 2014.+turbine+design+for+Rampion+Offshore+Wind+Farm&rft.pub=E.ON&rft_id=http://pressreleases.eon-uk.com/blogs/eonukpressreleases/archive/2014/11/24/2401.aspx&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Rampion+Wind+Farm" class="Z3988">
3. ^ a b "Rampion Offshore Wind Farm Hits Full Stride". Offshore Wind. Retrieved 3 May 2018.
4. ^ "The south coast's first offshore wind farm". Rampion Offshore Wind. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
5. ^ "Rampion - 116 turbines to be built". 4C Offshore. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
6. ^ a b c d e f g "Rampion Offshore Wind Farm Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), February 2012" (PDF). E.ON. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 May 2012. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
7. ^ "Five Fascinating Facts about . . . Ditchling Beacon". Sussex Wildlife Trust. Archived from the original on 23 April 2013. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
8. ^ "E.on cuts Rampion by 43%". WPO Intelligence. Retrieved 14 November 2016.
9. ^ "Newhaven Port reveals how the Rampion wind farm will help secure its future". Sussex Express. 12 October 2012. Archived from the original on 19 October 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
10. ^ "Rampion offshore wind farm approved by government". BBC News. 16 July 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
11. ^ a b "Rampion wind farm construction gets under way". BBC News. 18 May 2015.
12. ^ James, Ben (11 March 2017). "First giant turbines installed at wind farm". The Argus. Retrieved 11 March 2017.
13. ^ "2,000-tonne substation is installed at Rampion wind farm". Worthing Herald. 21 April 2017.
14. ^ "Lancing Beach wind farm excavator stranded at sea". BBC News. 11 April 2017.
15. ^ "Turbine installation almost at halfway mark" (PDF). 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 September 2017.
16. ^ Ryan, Siobhan (30 June 2017). "Moby Dig: £850,000 digger stuck in the sea finally removed". The Argus.
17. ^ James, Ben (29 November 2017). "Milestone as Rampion generates first power". The Argus. Newsquest. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
18. ^ Buljan, Adrijana (29 January 2021). "Rampion OWF Blows Past Its Expected Generation in 2020". Offshore Wind. Retrieved 28 May 2025.
19. ^ "Home - Rampion 2". 18 November 2020. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
20. ^ "Rampion 2 Offshore Wind Farm | National Infrastructure Planning". infrastructure.planninginspectorate.gov.uk. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
21. ^ "Rampion 2 Offshore Wind Farm development consent decision announced".

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rampion Wind Farm.

* Rampion Offshore Wind Farm, E.ON
* Rampion Offshore Wind Farm. 4C
* Rampion 2
* Planning inspectorate project page for Rampion 2

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