TEESSIDE’S coast will become home to the world’s biggest offshore wind farm in a project expected to deliver thousands of jobs and power every home in the North-East.

Dogger Bank Teesside A&B, which will erect up to 400 turbines in the North Sea, has been approved by the Government.

Developer Forewind says the scheme will create and support 4,750 posts and be capable of generating enough energy to power every North-East business throughout the year.

They added the farm, about 100 miles off Teesside, will be the second largest energy producer behind the coal-fired Drax plant, in North Yorkshire.

Regional offshore support body NOF Energy has welcomed the news, saying it hopes local companies can benefit.

Forewind says power will be brought on land between Redcar and Marske through cables, before being connected to the national grid at Lackenby, near the Wilton industrial site.

Officials told The Northern Echo the farm is due to be built by August 2022, with its turbines expected to be taller than those used on EDF Energy Renewables’ Teesside Wind Farm, at Redcar, which is capable of powering about 40,000 homes.

Tarald Gjerde, general manager of the Forewind consortium, which is owned equally by energy companies RWE, SSE, Statkraft and Statoil, confirmed it will use North-East workers and the region’s offshore supply chain.

He said: “This represents a real opportunity for the UK to receive even more of its energy from its abundant wind resource.

“The North-East is well positioned to take advantage of the many supply chain and employment opportunities, due to their geographical proximity and their industrial and marine heritage, with existing skills in large-scale production activities and a history of offshore support.”

The approval comes after Forewind’s Dogger Bank Creyke Beck proposals for hundreds more turbines off the East Yorkshire coast, were previously backed by the Government.

That scheme is expected to generate the same amount of power as Teesside A&B, with energy sent to Cottingham, near Hull.

Bosses say the combined developments will be the world’s biggest planned offshore wind scheme and are the UK’s largest ever approved renewable energy projects.

Paul Charlton, chairman of NOF Energy, the business support organisation for the region’s oil, gas, nuclear and offshore renewable firms, said the scheme represents a major opportunity for local companies.

He added: “The second phase of Dogger Bank offers real potential for the North-East’s offshore wind supply chain.

“Companies in this region are well positioned to support the initial development and the subsequent operation and maintenance of the wind farm, both in terms of their geographical location and their sector experience.

“The North-East has a strong cluster of businesses that have developed considerable expertise in the offshore wind sector.

“They bring robust, reliable and cost effective solutions to the operators based on outright quality, innovation and skill.

“NOF welcomes the announcement of the second phase and we encourage the Dogger Bank alliance partners to engage with local supply chain companies.”

As part of the consent process a final six-week legal challenge period will now be carried out.