The UK Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero has approved the Development Consent Order (DCO) for the Morecambe offshore wind farm in the Irish Sea, owned by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP).
The seabed lease for the 480 MW project, proposed to be built approximately 30 kilometres from the Lancashire coast, was secured in the UK Offshore Wind Leasing Round 4 in 2021.
Morecambe is being developed by Copenhagen Offshore Partners (COP) on behalf of CIP, which acquired full ownership of the project at the beginning of 2025 from Cobra Group and Flotation Energy.
The offshore wind farm is scheduled to enter construction in 2027, and once operational, will generate enough renewable electricity to power more than 500,000 UK homes, according to its owner.
The statutory deadline for the decision on the Morecambe offshore wind farm’s DCO was 23 October, but it was delayed in mid-October “ to allow time to request further information that was not available for consideration during the examination period and to give all interested parties the opportunity to review and comment on such information.”
“This positive offshore planning approval represents a major step for the Morecambe Offshore Wind Farm and we are ready to progress to the next phase of the project. This approval reinforces confidence in our vision for the future of offshore wind in the UK and the region, and it reflects the strong collaboration between our team, regulators, and stakeholders” , said Keld Bennetsen , Executive Vice President and Head of Europe at COP.