£3bn London Array project rescued by Abu Dhabi

A £3bn project to build a massive wind farm in the Thames Estuary is on surer footing after Abu Dhabi bought into the scheme.

Masdar, a clean energy investment fund controlled by the Gulf state, will buy a 20% stake in the London Array project from E.on.

Up to 271 wind turbines are proposed for construction off the Kent and Essex coasts to generate 1,000 megawatts of electricity for 750,000 homes, reported the Times.

But the project had been in doubt after Royal Dutch Shell withdrew from it and E.on revealed it's economics were "at best" marginal.

Prime minister Gordon Brown said: “This is an excellent example of the partnership that we need between oil-producing and consuming countries to develop new energy sources and technologies, diversifying their economies and reducing our dependence on carbon.”