Germany’s Innogy SE (www.iam.innogy.com)has revealed that it began generating power from the Galloper offshore wind farm — 30km off the Suffolk coast — on 5 November.

‘First generation’ is a major milestone on the way to bringing all 56 wind turbines on-line, which is expected in early 2018.

The project is owned by Innogy SE, Macquarie Capital, Siemens Financial Services and a consortium managed by Green Investment Group and Macquarie Infrastructure, and Real Assets.

Project director Toby Edmonds said: “We have generated in record time, having built the offshore part of the project in a single year, which is a fantastic achievement.

“Offshore wind-turbine technology is moving at breathtaking speed, so we can also announce that we have been able to improve the turbines and increase their power from 6MW to 6.3MW, amounting to 17MW across the entire wind farm. This means we can supply power to an additional 40,000-plus homes, bringing the total to over 380,000.”

2016 saw the start of offshore activity, with the first foundations and the first cable being installed. This year saw the first offshore sub-station installed in early May, along with the first turbine — and the second cable.

All 56 array cables have now been placed and buried, and 38 of the 56 turbines are now in situ.

Innogy is one of the world’s leading renewable-energy developers, with an installed capacity of 3.7GW. It currently has six offshore wind farms in full operation, two in construction (including Galloper), and others in development.