Potential of thousands of jobs from major Angus wind farm

The proposed Seagreen windfarm off the coast of Angus could create thousands of jobs.

The array – a 50:50 joint venture between Perth-based SSE and Fluor – was awarded initial planning consents in 2014 along with two other major windfarm developments – Inch Cape and Neart na Gaoithe.

Sid Anverali, senior project manager with Seagreen Wind Energy Limited, has now said the group is hoping to deliver the project in the early to mid2020s.

He said it was hoped Seagreen would recreate the “positive impacts expected” from Beatrice, the £2.6 billion Sse-led wind farm currently being built in the Moray Firth.

That project is expected to support more than 18,100 years worth of full-time employment during construction and will employ up to 90 full-time operations and maintenance staff once up and running.

It is also anticipated it will add around £1.13bn to UK GDP annually, of which £530 million will boost the Scottish economy.

However, Seagreen will have to clear a major hurdle before any economic benefits can be realised.

Speaking ahead of this month’s Renewable UK Global Offshore Wind Conference, Mr Anverali said Seagreen first had to secure a Contract for Difference (CFD) contract in the UK power auction scheduled for next Spring.

A CFD contract gives the developer certainty about the price it will be paid for the electricity it produces.

“The first step towards creating these benefits is to secure a contract in the Spring 2019 CFD auction to deliver the project in the early to mid2020s,” Mr Anverali said.

“The Seagreen project team is working hard to develop a competitive bid for the auction and is actively considering supply chain partnerships across all elements of the project.”

Sid Anverali, senior project manager at Seagreen Wind Energy Limited