The UK government has awarded planning permission to Orsted for the 2600MW Hornsea 4 wind farm off east England.
The delayed decision follows months of additional consultations following the close of the examination process.
Secretary of State Grant Shapps accepted there will be impacts from the scheme but said these are outweighed by its importance to climate goals.
Orsted is planning up to 180 turbines at the site 69km off Yorkshire.
“The Secretary of State concludes that the significant benefits associated with the Proposed Development in contributing to the urgent need for low-carbon energy infrastructure of the type proposed outweigh the harms identified, and therefore concludes that consent should be granted to the Proposed Development,” stated a decision notice.
The decision is subject to various mitigation measures.
Orsted said the ruling “marks the culmination of a rigorous process which ensures that the project can deliver a significant source of clean energy for the UK”.
“Hornsea 4 is the first ever offshore wind farm to be examined alongside a derogation case including environmental compensation. We are now reviewing the full detail of the Development Consent Order and will continue to work closely with stakeholders and local communities as we look to take Hornsea 4 forward sensitively and sustainably,” a spokesperson said.
“Offshore wind projects such as Hornsea 4 are key to the UK’s energy security and will bring billions of pounds of investment into the UK, provide low-cost electricity for consumers and thousands of high-quality jobs. We’d like to thank everyone involved in the project to date and for all the feedback and comments we have received that have helped shape our proposals.”
RenewableUK’s Executive Director of Policy Ana Musat welcomed the decision.
“It’s great to see one of the UK’s largest offshore wind farms getting the green light from the Government, at a time when we urgently need to get cracking on building new clean energy projects to generate the cheapest power for billpayers and enable us to bolster domestic supply chains,” she said.
“Hornsea 4 will strengthen Britain’s energy security significantly, helping us to move away from the volatility of international gas prices and closer towards energy independence, as well as enabling us to take a major leap forward towards net zero.”
The Planning Inspectorate’s Chief Executive Paul Morrison said: “The Planning Inspectorate has now examined more than 100 nationally significant infrastructure projects since the Planning Act 2008 process was introduced, ensuring local communities have had the opportunity of being involved in the examination of projects that may affect them.
“Local communities continue to be given the opportunity of being involved in the examination of projects that may affect them. Local people, the local authority and other Interested Parties were able to participate in this six-month Examination.
“The Examining Authority listened and gave full consideration to all local views and the evidence gathered during the Examination before making its recommendation to the Secretary of State.”