by business editor Trevor Sturgess

The world’s biggest wind farm is to go ahead off the Kent coast.

London Array, which will eventually have more than 300 turbines, was given a boost today with a pledge by consortium partners DONG Energy, E.ON and Masdar to invest £2bn in the first phase of the project.

It is likely to create scores of jobs in Thanet and beyond, and give a huge boost to the East Kent economy.

The scheme is key to the Government’s campaign to achieve a substantial part of UK energy from renewable resources such as wind and wave power.

Work will begin this summer, with the first power due to be generated in 2012. It will come ashore at a sub-station at Graveney, near Faversham, where it will be fed into the National Grid.

Once complete, the scheme will be the world’s largest offshore wind farm, supplying enough power for around 750,000 homes across Kent and Greater London.

The partners said they were satisfied that the project was now financially viable and were keen to push ahead with construction.

E.ON chief executive Wulf Bernotat said: "I’m delighted that work can now get underway on the world’s largest offshore wind farm. The start of London Array will mark a key milestone in our roadmap as we continue with our ambitious strategy to take renewables to an industrial level."

Prime Minister Gordon Brown said: "The London Array is a flagship project in our drive to cut emissions by 80 per cent by 2050 and meet future energy needs. The UK is a world leader in offshore wind farms, creating jobs and prosperity for the economy. That’s why we have increased our support for this technology as we move towards a low carbon future."

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband said it was a green light for green energy. "The UK is already the world’s leading offshore wind power and this multi-billion pound project will help keep us there, cut our carbon emissions and contribute to secure energy supplies."

The scheme will be built around 12 miles off the Kent coast. The wind farm will be installed on a 90 square mile site and will be built in two phases. The consortium hopes the first phase of 630MW will be completed and generating in 2012. The first phase will consist of 175 turbines. The second phase will add enough capacity to bring the total to 1,000MW.