Orkney Islands Council (OIC) is to develop two wind farms to boost the needs case for a new interconnector with the Scottish mainland.
The local authority will kick off public consultations next month on the projects: the up to 32MW Faray in the North Isles and up to 24MW Quanterness near Kirkwall on the Orkney mainland.
The site on Faray has enough space for up to eight turbines with a tip height of 150 metres, OIC said in a statement.
The proposed Quanterness site has the potential capacity for six machines with 150-metre tips, it added.
The proximity of the project at Quanterness to Kirkwall could also enable a separate private wire network to allow OIC to directly supply electricity to its own buildings as a means to reduce costs.
OIC announced last year its intention to develop the seven-turbine, up to 28MW Hoy wind farm.
Site investigations, including bird and telecommunications studies, will be undertaken at all three sites with a view to securing consent for the three sites by the end of 2020.
In order to secure a new interconnector, Scottish and Southern Energy Networks (SSEN) must agree on a needs case for the new connection Ofgem.
SSEN proposed 70MW would require to be signed up for a grid connection by the end of 2019. Ofgem has proposed 135MW is required.
“Although negotiation is ongoing, with an announcement expected shortly, it is highly likely that whatever the final decision, the council will need to have projects in development in order to reach the required number of megawatts to trigger a new cable,” said OIC.