SSE Renewables and TotalEnergies have generated first power from the almost 1100MW Seagreen offshore wind farm off east Scotland.
The first Vestas 10MW turbine was commissioned and grid connected in the early hours of Monday 22 August.
Seagreen is expected to be operational in the first half of 2023.
It is located 27 km off the coast of Angus in Scotland.
As well as being Scotland’s largest offshore wind farm the £3bn project will also be the world’s deepest fixed bottom wind farm that is operational to date.
Its deepest foundation is due to be installed at 59 metres below sea level in December.
Paul Cooley, Director of Global Offshore Wind for SSE Renewables, said: “Seagreen has achieved a number of key milestones to date, but to see this turbine turning in the North Sea and to have reached first power safely, is a fantastic achievement for everyone connected to the project.
“The project has already brought benefits to the local community, the UK supply chain and, once completed, Seagreen will make a significant contribution to Scotland and the UK’s ambitious renewable energy targets.”
TotalEnergies entered into an agreement with SSE Renewables to acquire a 51% stake in the Seagreen project in June 2020.
Vincent Stoquart Senior Vice President Renewables of TotalEnergies said: “We are delighted to announce the start of power generation from Seagreen, our first offshore wind farm in the UK North Sea. This marks a new step in the development of TotalEnergies’ offshore activities capacity.
“This milestone will contribute directly to our objective of reaching 35GW of renewable electricity capacity worldwide by 2025.”