Octopus Energy has bought a 12.5 per cent stake in the Walney Extension offshore wind farm.

The energy company's generation arm has invested into the wind farm, once the largest in the world.

The firm says it will rapidly scale its offshore wind activity to boost energy security in the UK.

The wind farm is made up of 87 turbines - each taller than the 158m high Blackpool tower. It has been operational since 2018 and produces clean power for nearly 600,000 homes.

This latest investment was made by the newly launched £3 billion Octopus Energy Offshore Wind fund - set up with a cornerstone investment from Tokyo Gas - and the Sky fund (ORI SCsp), both managed by Octopus Energy Generation.

The UK is one of largest offshore wind markets - second in the world after China. The country already has 14 GW of offshore wind, with plans to increase this to 50 GW by 2030.

Zoisa North-Bond, CEO of Octopus Energy Generation, said: “The future for offshore wind is here and now - and just this year, wind power overtook gas in Britain.

"The UK is already a world leader in offshore wind and we’re confident this secure and home-grown energy source will play an even bigger role in the UK’s energy mix.

"We’re overjoyed to make this investment after we recently announced our Offshore Wind Fund, and we’ll continue to rapidly scale our offshore wind activity globally.”

As well as investing in operational projects, Octopus says it is also driving the creation of new offshore wind energy around the world.

Previous deals include wind farm developers with projects in countries including Norway, Sweden, Ireland, Spain, South Korea and more.

Octopus bought the stake in Walney Extension from AIP Management, the investment manager for Danish pension fund PKA and PFA.