London Array wind farm off the Thanet coast

by business editor Trevor Sturgess

It's official - London Array has become the world's largest operational offshore wind farm.

The milestone was reached off the Thanet coast at 17.49 on Thursday.

As many as 141 of 175 3.6MW Siemens turbines are now able to generate 507MW of energy for UK homes and businesses. The previous title was held by Greater Gabbard, which is rated at 500MW.

The consortium behind the project hailed it as a significant achievement for everyone involved. London Array generated its first power last October, feeding renewable energy to an onshore site at Graveney, and then into the National Grid.

The final turbine was installed in December 2012 and the project is expected to be fully operational in the Spring.

A consortium comprising Danish firm DONG Energy (50%), E.ON (30%) and Masdar (20%), is behind London Array. The first phase is costing £1.76bn.