The first wind turbine has been installed at the Rampion Offshore Wind Farm, where 116 wind turbines are being installed 13km off the Sussex coast.
Once completed the project — by E.ON and Canadian energy company Enbridge — will provide enough electricity to supply almost 347,000 homes.
The ship MPI Discovery is bringing the turbines from Esbjerg in Denmark. Eight turbines can be transported at a time, each weighing 200 tonnes; when installed, they are at a height of 80m.
Each of the three blades fitted to the turbines is 55m long; the duct trenches for the cables that transfer the electricity to shore were dug along the seabed last year. Once the project is complete, it will provide 60 full-time jobs for staff to maintain the turbines. The project is due for completion in 2018.
Chris Tomlinson, manager for the Rampion Offshore Wind Farm, said: “After seven years of planning, development and initial construction, we are especially proud to have reached this major milestone, which will see the Rampion project really begin to take shape.
“The first turbine is a powerful symbol of the engineering achievement that Rampion and other offshore wind farms represent.”