Danish energy group Orsted has officially launched the Walney Extension project, the biggest offshore wind farm in the world. The park is located nearby the North-West coast of UK and covers an area of 145 square kilometers.

The Walney Extension project has started to produces electricity, boasting a capacity of 659 megawatts (MW). This makes it the world’s biggest offshore wind park in operation, overtaking the London Array off England’s east coast with a capacity of 630 MW.

The Walney Extension produces enough electricity to power almost 600,000 homes. It’s made up of 87 turbines built by Siemens Gamesa and MHI Vestas, the largest turbines of their kind in operation globally.

Strong winds and secure subsidies

Offshore success was due to a combination of strong wind speeds and shallow waters, adding that it was also due to continued support from the government, explains Orsted UK Managing Director Matthew Wright, according to Reuters.

Great Britain is the world’s biggest offshore wind market, hosting 36 percent of globally installed wind capacity, according to data from the global Wind Energy Council.

Danish energy group Orsted began the construction of the project in 2015. Walney Extension is a shared-ownership project between Danish energy group Orsted (50% of the shares) and two Danish pension funds, PFA and PKA.

Europe is an important player in offshore wind energy with over 4,000 wind turbines installed in 11 countries, according to WindEurope data.