Projects/Offshore Wind/Burbo Bank

OperationalOffshore Wind · UK CE R1United Kingdom· 53.48°N 3.17°W

Burbo Bank

Installed capacity

90MW

25 × Siemens SWT-3.6-107

Turbines

Siemens SWT-3.6-107

WTG foundations

Monopile

Fixed-bottom

Capex

—

Route to market

Ownership100%

Ørsted100%

SPVØrsted Burbo (UK) Limited

Lifecycle

Site secured

Apr 2001

Jul 2003

Consent approved

Offshore start

2005

Jul 2007

First power

COD

Aug 2007

Transmission

Developer Full

Array voltage

—

From shore

7 km

0.5–7.8 m depth

Export length

10 km

7 km offshore · 4 km onshore

Supply chain8 contracts

Manufacture

Installation

Turbine

25 units

Siemens Wind Power+1

—

Foundation

Smulders+1

MT Højgaard+1

Project notessourced · 18 documents

Burbo Bank is an operational offshore wind farm on the Burbo Flats in Liverpool Bay, off the Mersey estuary, with an installed capacity of about 90 MW. Commissioned in 2007, the project comprises 25 Siemens 3.6 MW turbines installed on monopile foundations in very shallow water and was developed originally by SeaScape Energy / DONG Energy (now part of Ørsted’s portfolio). Its coastal location close to the Wirral and Sefton shores made it one of the early UK offshore projects to demonstrate routine commercial-scale offshore turbine installation, O&M base establishment and long‑term operation in the Irish Sea. The project is notable as an early UK deployment of 3.6 MW offshore machines and for the delivery and installation contracts and logistics typical of first-generation UK projects (monopile supply/installation, turbine supply and dedicated installation vessels). Over time ownership and operator arrangements have evolved with Ørsted (formerly DONG Energy) listed as the operating company and continuing investment in operational efficiency. In 2023–24 the operator sought and obtained consent for modest aerodynamic blade-tip modifications (tip extenders/boosters) intended to increase energy yield without materially changing the farm’s character, illustrating a trend of life‑extension and performance‑improvement projects applied to early offshore assets. Burbo Bank continues to provide a locally sited, grid‑connected source of renewable generation and a base of operational experience in UK nearshore offshore wind.

Basic information

11 fields

Also Known As

Burbo Bank Offshore Wind Farm · Burbo Flats

Status

operational

Capacity

90 MW

Owners

Ørsted100%

Project Company

Ørsted Burbo (UK) LimitedSPV

Transmission Model

Developer Full

Connection Type

radial

Onshore Substation

Wallasey onshore substation (near Birkenhead / Wallasey)

Landfall

Mockbeggar Wharf, Leasowe (Wirral)

Expected Life

25 years

Website

orsted.com

Cable Specifications

10 fields

Burbo Bank — Wallasey export cable

Leasowe, Wirral, United Kingdom

3 × 33 kV HVAC · copper 500 mm² 140 mm dia. · XLPE (Cross-linked Polyethylene) · 90 MVA · 10 km · 35 kg/m

System:3 × 33 kV HVAC

Construction:copper · 500 mm² · 140 mm dia.

Insulation:XLPE (Cross-linked Polyethylene)

Power rating:90 MVA

Route length:10 km(6.5 subsea · 3.5 land)

Weight:35 kg/m air

Burial depth:

The export cables for the original Burbo Bank (90 MW) were installed by trenching/ploughing through the foreshore and seabed and then brought ashore into underground ducts to the Wallasey/Birkenhead onshore...

Fibre optic:

Public sources for the original Burbo Bank indicate the use of fibre for distributed temperature sensing (DTS) in the cable system (LIOS Technology DTS was used for temperature monitoring of...