Queen invests in wind power

• By E4B
• 23 May 2008
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The Queen is to invest in an offshore windfarm development in waters off the coast of Scotland, having already bought the world's largest wind turbine.

Royal property management arm the Crown Estate revealed it was asking for initial interest from companies wishing to be considered for developing commercial scale windfarms.

The announcement follows a deal signed in April for the Crown Estate to buy the massive 7.5MW MBE turbine, also known as the Britannia project.

Crown Estate director of marine estates Rob Hastings said: "This announcement to launch Scottish offshore wind clearly demonstrates the Crown Estate's commitment to facilitating the next phase of offshore wind energy development in Scotland."

The news follows remarks from Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) bosses suggesting Britain needs to build four major wind farms a year to meet targets on the provision of domestic and commercial electricity.

According to Reuters, SSE chief executive Ian Marchant said the UK would need to expand offshore wind to meet the goal of getting 15 per cent of its energy from renewable sources by 2020.