Iberdrola, through its UK subsidiary ScottishPower, has installed the first turbine at the East Anglia THREE offshore windfarm, marking the first use in the UK of turbines equipped with 115-metre blades, the largest manufactured and installed in the country to date.

The project will comprise 95 turbines of 14MW each and a total of 285 blades, all manufactured in the UK by Siemens Gamesa at its facility in Hull. Each blade measures 115 metres, exceeding the length of a professional football pitch.

East Anglia THREE is being developed by Iberdrola, with Masdar participating since July 2025 under a strategic agreement between both companies. The project represents an investment of £4 billion.

Located in the North Sea, off the coast of Suffolk, the offshore windfarm will have an installed capacity of 1.4GW. Once operational, expected by the end of 2026, it will generate enough electricity to supply more than 1.3 million homes in the UK.

The turbines will reach a total height of around 300 metres, including foundations, and will have a rotor diameter of 236 metres. Each full rotation of a turbine can generate enough electricity to supply a household for more than four days or charge approximately 1,700 mobile phones.

The installation of the first turbine was carried out using Cadeler’s Wind Osprey jack-up vessel. The Wind Pace vessel is expected to join the installation campaign later this month in its first deployment in European waters.

The project has secured long-term revenue through 15-year Contracts for Difference awarded in the UK Government’s AR4 and AR6 auctions, as well as a long-term power purchase agreement signed with Amazon in 2024.

During construction, the project has supported more than 2,300 jobs and is expected to create around 100 permanent positions during operation in the east of England.