The world’s deepest fixed-bottom offshore wind farm produces first power

Seagreen offshore wind farm, 16.7 miles (27 km) off the coast of Angus in eastern Scotland, has generated its first power. The £3 billion ($3.54 billion) project will be Scotland’s largest offshore wind farm. It will also be the world’s deepest fixed-bottom offshore wind farm, as it’s being sited in water depths of up to 194 feet (59 meters).

The first of Seagreen’s offshore wind turbines was commissioned yesterday morning. It is one of 114 Vestas turbines that were installed starting in December 2021 — and it was the first 10 megawatt (MW) offshore wind turbine installed in Europe.

The 1,075 MW farm is expected to be fully operational in the first half of 2023.

Seagreen is owned by French energy giant TotalEnergies and UK clean energy developer SSE Renewables. TotalEnergies acquired a 51% stake in Seagreen in June 2020, and SSE Renewables will operate Seagreen for its expected 25-year life span.

Once it’s fully operational, Seagreen will produce around 5 terawatt hours (TWh) of clean electricity annually, which is enough to power more than 1.6 million UK households. Or in other words, the equivalent of around two-thirds of all households in Scotland.

Paul Cooley, director of offshore Wind at SSE Renewables, said:

We often talk about key milestones along a project’s journey, and Seagreen has had a number 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 several 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.

Read more: The world’s most powerful wind turbine will make its debut in Scotland

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