The cost of building offshore wind farms has fallen to a new low, with Sweden's Vattenfall winning contracts to build two projects in Danish waters for just over €60 (£51) per megawatt-hour (MWh).

That undercuts a previous record set by Denmark's Dong Energy, which in July won a contract for a project in the Netherlands at €72.70/MWh.

Although the prices are not directly comparable with those awarded in the UK, because they exclude grid connection costs which can be up to €30/MWh, they are nevertheless substantially cheaper than the most recent UK deals, awarded early last year for about £120/MWh.

Magnus Hall, Vattenfall chief executive, said the deals showed it was "able to reduce the costs of offshore wind faster than had been expected, only a few years ago".