Energy giant SSE Renewables has signed a deal with MHI Vestas to deliver turbines for its 1.1GW Seagreen mega-development, the biggest offshore wind farm yet to be built off Scotland.
The Japanese-Danish OEM’s preferred supplier agreement – which covers the 454MW Seagreen 1 project won by SSE in the UK contract for difference (CfD) awards announced last month as well as the follow-on phase at the Firth of Forth project – will be filled with 114 machines. The nameplate and model will be revealed at the contract signing, Recharge was told.
“We’re really pleased to welcome MHI Vestas to the Seagreen project as our preferred turbine supplier and look forward to working with them to harness the power of North Sea wind with their proven offshore turbine technology,” said SSE Renewables Seagreen project director John Hill.
“Once completed, the project will inherit the crown of SSE Renewables’ other Scottish wind farm, [588MW] Beatrice, and become Scotland’s largest offshore wind farm. We were very grateful to have been able to work with so many expert Scottish companies on Beatrice and we hope to replicate that local partnership success on Seagreen.”
MHI Vestas CEO Philippe Kavafyan stated: “We are proud to enter into a preferred supplier agreement with Seagreen for the supply of our proven wind turbine technology to Scotland’s largest offshore wind farm.”
The turbine award for Seagreen is the first contract to come out of the record-setting project, with SSE Renewables now planning to hold a series of road-shows “to enable businesses to gear up to bid for contracts, meet the [project] team, its principal contractors and understand the wealth of opportunities on offer”.
SSE Renewables calculates Seagreen could contribute over £2bn ($2.5bn) to the UK economy, half of which could be in Scotland.
Hill said: “Seagreen represents one of the most significant construction projects ever undertaken in Scotland and we want members of the Scottish supply chain to have the opportunity to work with us.”
Kavafyan added: “Scotland is a burgeoning centre for offshore wind and we are keen to work closely with both the Scottish and UK supply chain to create real value for the local communities as this project becomes a reality. We see the project as a major step forward for the offshore wind industry in the UK, and Scotland in particular.”
Seagreen, which is sited some 27km offshore in water depths of 35-70m, was awarded to SSE Renewables by the UK Crown Estate in 2010 as part the country’s Round 3 auction and consented in October 2014, but further development was waylaid until November 2017 due to an ultimately unsuccessful legal challenge by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.
The CfD contract won earlier this year will account for 42% of the total project capacity, with SSE Renewables in the midst of finalising financing for full 1,075MW.
Once on-line in 2024, Seagreen is expected to supply some 5TWh a year, enough power for around 1 million homes and saving around 2 million tonnes of CO2 emissions annually. SSE sees phase 1 of the project as expandable to a total capacity of 1.5MW, but the larger Seagreen zone could house some 3.5GW of turbines.
SSE Renewables owns nearly 2GW of onshore wind capacity, with over 1GW under development, and an offshore wind portfolio totalling 580MW across three sites, two of which it operates on behalf of its joint venture partners.
