SSE Renewables and partner TotalEnergies have announced first power generation from the Seagreen offshore windfarm, 27 km off the coast of Angus in Scotland
The first Vestas turbine of a total of 114 was commissioned and connected to the grid in the early hours of 22 August 2022.
The 1,075-MW windfarm is expected to be fully operational in the first half of 2023.
The £3Bn Seagreen project will be Scotland’s largest offshore windfarm and the world’s deepest fixed-bottom windfarm with its deepest foundation due to be installed 59 m below sea level in December 2022.
SSE Renewables director of global offshore wind Paul Cooley 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 senior vice president renewables Vincent Stoquart said, “We are delighted to announce the start of generation from Seagreen, our first offshore wind farm in the UK.
“This marks a new step in the development of TotalEnergies’ offshore activity. This milestone will contribute directly to our objective of reaching 35 GW of renewable electricity capacity worldwide by 2025.”
TotalEnergies entered into an agreement with SSE Renewables to acquire a 51% stake in the Seagreen project in June 2020. When fully operational, it will produce around 5 terawatt hours of renewable electricity per year.
