Planning Consent Submitted

London Array Limited (a consortium initially comprising E.ON UK, Shell WindEnergy and CORE — Centrica/CORE later replaced by DONG Energy and Masdar) submitted the Section 36 application under the Electricity Act 1989 to the Department of Trade and Industry in June 2005, together with the associated Coast Protection Act 1949 consent application — making London Array the first UK Round 2 offshore wind farm to apply for planning consent. The application sought permission for a 1,000 MW project to be built in two phases (Phase 1: 630 MW / 175 turbines), located in the outer Thames Estuary on the Long Sand and Kentish Knock sandbanks, approximately 20 km off the Kent coast. The supporting Environmental Statement was prepared by RPS group in 2005, drawing on environmental studies that had begun in 2001. The project followed The Crown Estate's December 2003 Round 2 lease awards. Section 36 consent was granted by the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry in December 2006. Phase 1 construction began in 2011 and commercial operation was achieved in April 2013, making London Array the world's largest operational offshore wind farm at the time. The consenting regime has since been replaced in England by the Development Consent Order regime under the Planning Act 2008.