SSE Renewables is to combine two proposed offshore wind farm projects into a single 4100MW development.
Berwick Bank and Marr Bank offshore wind farms, off the east coast of Scotland, have been brought together into one single wind farm, now known as Berwick Bank Wind Farm.
With a potential output of 4.1GW, Berwick Bank Wind Farm would more than double the size of current offshore wind either in construction or operational in Scotland at the moment.
It would also increase the country’s overall renewable energy capacity by nearly 30%, SSE Renewables said.
Alex Meredith, SSE Renewables’ Berwick Bank project director (pictured) said: “By combining the two project proposals into a super project we believe we can deliver Berwick Bank Wind Farm – one of the world’s largest offshore wind opportunities – more quickly.”
Berwick Bank Wind Farm is already at an advanced stage of development, with a planning application which is expected to go to the Scottish Government in Spring 2022.
If consented and greenlit for construction, it could begin generating clean electricity in the second half of this decade and help Scotland meet its near-term net zero targets of generating up to 11GW new offshore wind by 2030.
Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Climate Change Michael Matheson said: “Decarbonising our energy demands is a vital component of our just transition to net-zero and our world-leading renewables sector will play a vital role in this.
“The continuing growth of offshore wind over the next decade will be crucial to meeting our incredibly stretching, near-term climate targets, and we will need to work innovatively, at pace and with agility to do so.
“I welcome this announcement from SSE Renewables which demonstrates their commitment to helping Scotland’s contribution to climate change within a generation.”