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A consortium comprising Macquarie’s Green Investment Group, French oil giant TotalEnergies and Scottish wind developer Renewable Infrastructure Development Group have unveiled plans to build a 2GW offshore windfarm near the Orkney Islands.
The proposals are currently undergoing assessment by Crown Estate Scotland after the consortium entered a bid for seabed rights for the project as part of the ScotWind leasing round.
They said the bid is the culmination of five years of engagement with stakeholders in Caithness and Orkney, with memorandums of understanding being signed with Orkney Harbour Authority and Scrabster Harbour Trust to enhance port infrastructure as well as the European Marine Energy Centre. They said they have already finalised a grid connection with National Grid and are aiming to begin generating in 2029.
Project director Stephen Kerr said: “While ScotWind has created the opportunity for a global industry to tap into Europe’s best wind resource, our consortium believes that success will be driven by targeted proposals built upon strong local relationships. We have designed our bid specifically around this location and brought together a unique combination of stakeholders to maximise the opportunities for the region.
“In particular, the upcoming round of offshore wind projects are a terrific opportunity for ports in Caithness and Orkney to win significant long-term contracts in the installation and operational phase of these major infrastructure schemes.
“Our agreements with Scrabster Harbour Trust and Orkney Harbour Authority will enable us to work together with a clear focus on long term delivery. Each port has its own specific capabilities and attributes, and on successful site award we have committed to fund collaborative design and supply studies and to invest where appropriate in improving each harbour’s infrastructure.”
Jim Buck, harbourmaster for Orkney Harbour Authority, said: “As a location, Orkney offers a natural environment like no other, particularly Scapa Flow which is the second largest natural harbour in the world.
“Our masterplan embraces decarbonisation and a transition away from fossil fuels. It includes a range of infrastructure enhancements across key locations around the Orkney mainland, including a new deep-water facility in Scapa Flow, which will be crucial to us realising our ambition to deliver social and economic benefit from offshore wind energy.
“The West of Orkney Windfarm is ideally positioned to make significant use of these future facilities and this collaboration represents another key step on our journey to position Orkney as a base for innovation and a major contributor in delivering a carbon-free future for the islands.”
Meanwhile, Ripple Energy has announced it has joined the NextGen consortium led by Quaybridge Scotland, Parkwind and Maple Power, which also entered bids into the ScotWind leasing round.
The community energy company allows consumers to buy micro-shares in windfarms and then use power produced from their stake themselves, lowering their energy bills. Ripple’s entry to the NextGen consortium represents its first attempt to apply the model to offshore wind.
NextGen innovation manager David Woodhead said: “The offshore wind sector in the UK has been slow on the uptake with community energy, but we believe that the benefits of opening up ownership of offshore wind projects to the public are huge.
“We have ambitious plans to break the mould with our ScotWind projects. We are really excited about this partnership and see great potential in Ripple’s innovative platform, both to enable meaningful consumer ownership of an offshore wind project for the first time, and as a vehicle to support wider local benefits in the Scottish communities neighbouring our wind farm projects.”
Sarah Merrick, founder and chief executive of Ripple Energy, said: “Partnering with NextGen represents a step change in the development of Ripple’s green energy ownership platform. It shows that, with the right approach, genuine community ownership is possible, even for very large offshore wind farms.
“This enables many more people to join the renewable energy revolution and support the transition to clean power. We look forward to working with them upon the successful award of a project lease in the ScotWind process.”
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