Pinsent Masons advises Hornsea Three Offshore Wind Farm as it secures consent from the Secretary of State

Hornsea Three will add to Ørsted's Hornsea One and Hornsea Two wind farms off the North Norfolk coast. It will be one the world's largest wind farms with Hornsea Three alone capable of generating approximately 2,400MW of electricity - the average daily need of over 2 million UK homes.

Partner, Gareth Phillips, led the Pinsent Masons team, which also included Partner, Gary McGovern, Senior Associate, Claire Brodrick, and Associates, Peter Cole and Amy Stirling.

Gareth Phillips commented, "Having worked on this project for over four years, I'm delighted for Ørsted UK. They have had the ambition and tenacity to drive forward this significant offshore wind project. It has been a privilege to be part of the team responsible for achieving this consent. The decision is an important step forward for the UK renewables industry, and helping the UK meet its net zero target".

"This is the first offshore wind farm to be consented under the regime for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects in reliance on a derogation case under the Habitats Regulations. The knowledge and experience garnered from this consent will transform how development consent order applications are approached for similar projects going forwards".

This is one of several major UK renewables projects that Pinsent Masons has successfully obtained a development consent order for this year. The firm advised a joint venture between Hive Energy and Wirsol Energy on the DCO for Cleve Hill Solar Park, the UK's largest solar park which was awarded in May 2020.