Dogger Bank South Offshore Wind Farms | Skills Hull and East Yorkshire

Introduction

The proposed DBS (Dogger Bank South) Offshore Wind Farms are being developed by RWE and Masdar for a shallow offshore area of the North Sea known as Dogger Bank, located over 100km off the northeast coast of England.

DBS comprises two separate sites, DBS East and DBS West. Based on an estimated combined capacity of 3GW, the projects could be capable of generating enough electricity to meet the average annual domestic electricity needs of around 3 million typical UK homes*. A maximum of 200 wind turbines would be installed across both Projects.

The proposed Onshore Export Cable Corridor connects the landfall point near Skipsea to Onshore Converter Stations located to the south of Beverley, for transmission into the National Grid.

The Projects are currently in the ‘Examination’ phase of the Development Consent Order (DCO) process. A decision around whether to grant the Projects development consent is expected in Winter 2025. Should the Projects be granted consent, the earliest that construction could commence is 2026, with the onshore construction works likely to commence first.

Project Partners

RWE will be leading development, construction and operation on behalf of the project partners RWE (51% share) and Masdar (49% share). RWE entered into Agreements for Lease for the two DBS projects with The Crown Estate in January 2023. In December 2023, Masdar announced it had acquired a 49 percent stake in the DBS offshore wind projects. The shareholding agreement between the companies was finalized in February 2024.

About RWE

RWE is one of the world's leading renewable energy companies and one of the largest renewable generators in the UK. RWE supplies around 15% of the UK electricity using a vast range of technologies.

RWE continues to grow its offshore portfolio in the UK, with 10 operational wind farms and one of the largest offshore wind development pipelines in the country.

About Masdar

Masdar (Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company) is a pioneer in advancing the clean energy sector and a global leader in sustainability and climate action. Masdar has developed and partnered projects in over 40 countries across six continents and has invested, or committed to invest, in worldwide projects with a combined value of more than US$30 billion.

Benefits

DBS will be a major opportunity for the local area and wider region and the Projects are working to ensure that the investment establishes a valuable and lasting legacy for local communities.

Up to 2,380 jobs supported across the UK, including 1,520 jobs across the Humber region during development and construction
Almost £1 billion Gross Value Added (GVA) in the UK, including £400 million in the Humber region during the development and construction
Up to 1,120 UK jobs, including up to 810 in the Humber region during the operations and maintenance stage

Skills

RWE already has a history of bringing education and employment to the east coast region helping to boost employability and help local people to compete for and win new jobs with RWE and across the wider offshore wind industry in the region.

DBS Offshore Wind is already investing in STEM related education programmes, job creation, skills, and training opportunities as these measures will help to protect and grow thriving, sustainable local economies and communities.

In North East England, the Projects investment in STEM related education programmes is encouraging young people to make quality learning decisions and develop new skills. Participation in the programmes boosts employability, helping people to compete for and win new jobs with us and across the wider offshore wind industry in the region.

RWE Wind Turbine Technician Apprenticeships

RWE has been running an NVQ Level 3 Wind Turbine Technician apprenticeship for over 10 years. It is a high-quality course that has been specially designed to train candidates to a high level that meets the needs of the growing offshore industry.

The course lasts for three years, with two of those years in college, followed by a full year hands-on experience while training at one of our offshore wind farm sites. A national apprenticeships hub has been developed by RWE in North Wales and this is where the two years of college-based study takes place, fully supported by the business.

Many of the apprentices trained through our apprentice programme go on to work on projects like DBS, or the wider RWE fleet, or within other offshore wind companies in the UK.

Apprenticeship applications open in February each year. You can find out more on the RWE Apprenticeship Hub: https://uk.rwe.com/career/apprenticeships/.

Community

DBS is already working closely with local communities to ensure that the Projects communicate clearly and in a timely manner about upcoming activities, hosting regular Local Liaison Committees with Parish Council representatives. The aim is to ensure that activities related to DBS cause the least possible inconvenience to local communities as the Projects progress.

Supply chain

Companies involved in the offshore wind supply chain are essential to the success of DBS and local and regional companies are well-placed to secure contracts on the projects in the future.

We plan to:

Maximise potential for the benefit of local businesses;
Create new, high-quality, long-term jobs;
Support new skills development and
Wherever possible, ensure that all local options are explored.

Business Opportunities

The Projects are engaging with businesses, sharing information about, and learning about goods, services and innovations local suppliers could provide.

Are you a local business interested in opportunities? Then sign up to RWE’s Supplier Transparency and Engagement Programme to introduce you company and be alerted when opportunities arise: https://uk.rwe.com/our-energy/offshore-wind/working-in-partnership-with-the-offshore-supply-chain/supplier-transparency-engagement-programme/.

To find out more information on DBS Offshore Wind, please visit the dedicated website: www.doggerbanksouth.co.uk.

*Calculation based on 2021 generation, and assuming average (mean) annual household consumption of 3,509 kWh, based on latest statistics from Department of Energy Security and Net Zero (Subnational Electricity and Gas Consumption Statistics Regional and Local Authority, Great Britain, 2021, Mean domestic electricity consumption (kWh per meter) by country/region, Great Britain, 2021).