As of 1 November 2011, the naval authorities have formally approved the area around Anholt Offshore Wind Farm to be a ‘restricted area at sea’.
This means that as of 1 November 2011, fishing and navigation, anchoring, diving and works at the seabed, which are not related to the construction of the wind farm, are prohibited.
As of 1 November 2011, the Anholt ferry will change its route, and the fishermen must sail around the area.
The restricted area is maintained to increase the navigation safety in the area. Though the installation of foundations and wind turbines will not commence until the change of the year, several vessels are already working in the area: Large stones are removed from the seabed and stone reefs are constructed; erosion protection is laid and supplementary seabed investigations are conducted.
During November, the working area will be marked with light buoys, and all mariners have been notified about the establishment of the restricted area through ‘Notice of mariners’. Special-purpose vessels will be placed in the area to monitor the shipping traffic in and around the area and to document any violation.
About Anholt Offshore Wind Farm
The installed capacity of the offshore wind farm is to be 400MW corresponding to the power consumption of approx 400,000 households. The offshore wind farm is to produce its first power by the end of 2012.
DONG Energy had acquired the licence for utilising the wind power for 25 years and is to construct and operate the offshore wind farm. The Danish transmission system operator, Energinet.dk, is responsible for establishing an offshore substation, the export cable to shore and the connection to the main high-voltage power grid on land.
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Source: dongenergy, October 05, 2011