Dong Energy plans world's largest windfarm repair hub at Grimsby

Dong Energy is planning to create the world’s largest offshore wind maintenance hub in Grimsby, creating at least 200 jobs.

The Danish company said the hub would be up and running from March 2018, initially serving three east coast windfarms. Westermost Rough is already operational, while Race Bank and Hornsea Project One are under construction. The three wind farms together are expected to generate enough electricity to power 1.5m homes.

The new facility at Grimsby’s Royal Dock will include a marine and helicopter centre capable for around-the-clock service to offshore farms. It will be served by two new hi-tech ships which can carry a 60-strong maintenance crew and remain at sea for long periods.

Brent Cheshire, Dong’s UK chairman, said the investment, worth about £10m, was a vote of confidence in the UK industry and would make windfarm maintenance more efficient.

“This new operational hub in Grimsby will be a game-changing industry first, raising the bar for the way we serve offshore wind farms,” Dong said. “It will generate direct and indirect job opportunities in the Humber region, as well as opportunities for the local supply chain,.

“It represents a massive vote of confidence to the UK offshore wind industry and confirms our commitment to the Humber region, where by 2019 we expect to have invested around £6bn.”

Cheshire said Britain’s decision to leave the EU had no impact on Dong’s investment plans in the UK.

“The Brexit vote doesn’t really affect us at all and we have currently committed to 2020. We see no real threat to offshore wind from the nuclear story. Offshore wind has a real part to play in terms of government policy and the signals are that it is very much part of the strategy.”

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Dong, which is based in Copenhagen and employs more than 600 people in Britain, said the new hub would create about 200 jobs. The Grimsby facility will have the capacity to support other east coast windfarms planned by Dong.

It will sit alongside the existing Westermost Rough maintenance centre, with the extra land to be leased from Associated British Ports.

The two ships have been designed by Rolls-Royce and will be supplied by the Norwegian shipping company Østensjø Rederi. The first ship will be delivered in late 2017.

Dong floated on the stock market in June but the Danish government remains its biggest shareholder, owning just over half of the shares.