SSE has taken a final investment decision to proceed with the 50MW Aberarder wind farm in the Scottish Highlands, in a circa £100m investment boost for its onshore wind portfolio.
Construction of the 12 turbine site, which is wholly owned by SSE Renewables, will begin before the end of the year with completion scheduled for the end of 2026.
The Aberarder scheme was successful in September 2023 in the UK’s fifth Contract for Difference (CfD) Allocation round, securing a 15-year contract for low-carbon power generation.
Located at Strathnairn near Inverness, on a natural plateau at an average of 700 metres above sea level, the site sits directly adjacent to the operational 94MW Dunmaglass wind farm, which is jointly owned by SSE Renewables and Greencoat UK Wind.
SSE Renewables acquired the fully consented project in October 2022.
When completed and operational, Aberarder will be capable of harnessing enough energy to power the equivalent of 60,000 homes annually, while offsetting over 35,000 metric tonnes of carbon emissions each year.
SSE Renewables director of onshore development and construction Heather Donald said: “Onshore wind is a critical component of the net zero transition.
“Projects like Aberarder support jobs and communities and generate clean green electricity for millions of homes and businesses up and down the country.
“They are also the foundation of a homegrown electricity system and will help strengthen energy security and deliver on Scotland and the UK’s net zero targets.”
Once completed, Aberarder will make an important contribution to the delivery of SSE plc’s Net Zero Acceleration Programme Plus (NZAP Plus), a fully funded, five-year investment plan to 2027 which will see SSE invest around £20.5bn or over £10m a day on average on critical low carbon energy and electricity infrastructure.
This plan includes increasing SSE Renewables’ net capacity from 4GW currently to more than 9GW, with around 2.5GW currently under construction.
Delivery of the Aberarder project will see SSE Renewables, in partnership with The Highland Council, undertake £2.5m of improvement works on the nearby Flichity Bridge.
Adding to the more than £9.75m of improvements to road infrastructure already delivered by SSE Renewables as part of the nearby Dunmaglass project.
Once operational, a substantial multi-million-pound Community Benefit Fund will be established for Aberarder, with equal funding contributions to be paid to local organisations from an annual community fund as well as from the Highland Sustainable Development Fund.