The UK government has given permit nods to RWE and Masdar’s 3GW Dogger Bank South and SSE and RWE’s 1GW North Falls wind farms off east England.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband (pictured) had until today (14 May) to make final determinations after re-setting the previous deadlines in late April to avoid the run-up to local elections held across England earlier this month.

The Dogger Bank South DCO application was accepted in July 2024. However, the consenting process was paused three months later to await additional paperwork before re-starting in January 2025.

Issues raised before the Planning Inspectorate completed its six-month examination of the Round 4 scheme last July included calls from Natural England and the Marine Management Organisation for a seasonal piling ban during construction.

SSE, Equinor and Vargronn also raised concerns over potential wake effects at the neighbouring 3.6GW Dogger Bank complex

The 200-turbine array has a grid connection at the National Grid’s proposed Creyke Beck substation near Cottingham and is expected to be fully commissioned by 2032.

The project won a £91.20/MWh Contract for Difference in Allocation Round 7.

The North Falls DCO application was meanwhile submitted in July 2024 and accepted for examination the following month. The Planning Inspectorate’s six-month examination concluded on 28 July 2025.

The proposed array 40km off East Anglia is an extension of SSE-RWE’s operational 504MW Greater Gabbard wind farm and will be eligible to enter this year’s Allocation Round 8.

The project will make landfall near Kirkby Brook, Essex, and is slated to connect to the National Grid at a proposed East Anglia Connection Node substation by the end of October 2030.

Elements of the scheme including the landfall location and onshore corridor for export cables have been closely coordinated with plans for RWE’s 1.1GW Five Estuaries wind farm, which was permitted in December.

Source: reNews