Angus wind farm project lost £16m

A proposed North Sea offshore wind farm project has posted multimillion-pound losses despite being years away from construction.

Inch Cape Offshore Wind Farm, a 72-turbine development planned off the coast of Angus, reported more than £16 million in pre-tax losses in its 2019 full year accounts.

The project made a pre-tax loss of £1.6m in 2018.

Chinese parent company SDIC Power Holdings yesterday stepped in and pledged a year of financial support in 2020 to “allow it to operate in a lawful and proper manner and satisfy all third-party obligations”.

It is understood the lion’s share of the losses resulted from operating costs.

However, directors also cited concerns over the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and Brexit, which could cause delays to the project.

The project lost out on a UK Government energy generation contract bid last year, meaning it will need to tender again in 2021 to get the go-ahead.

It is hoped Inch Cape, once consented, could bring at least £558m to the UK economy and create around 858 jobs.