Solway wind energy
The Scottish Government's Consultation on Draft Plan for Offshore Wind Energy in Scottish Territorial Waters (a non-technical summary of the Plan including a map of the proposed developments is available here is open for public consultation until 16 August 2010.
However, in recognition of the tight timescales involved, Marine Scotland will accept comments after this date but please email them before the 16th to let them know your comments are on their way.
The Team can be contacted at offshorewindconsultation@scotland.gsi.gov.uk
The Consultation document can be viewed on the Scottish Government’s website at www.scotland.gov.uk/consultations.
Outline to the Draft Plan for Offshore Wind Energy in Scottish Territorial Waters
The Scottish Government has launched (May 2010) its Draft Plan for Offshore Wind Energy in Scottish Territorial Waters. The introduction to the plan states:
The Scottish Government has made a commitment to generating 20% of all energy, and 50% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020. This requires that the current capacity of 4 Gigawatts (GW) is doubled to 8GW.
To date, a large share of renewable energy generation in Scotland has been delivered by onshore wind and hydroelectricity schemes. However, the advancement of new technology and the natural characteristics of Scotland’s marine environment - it has been estimated that we have 25% of Europe’s offshore wind resource - means that there is considerable potential for offshore wind, wave and tidal energy developments in the coming years. Forecast growth based on projects under construction, consented or in planning or scoping suggest that future capacity could extend beyond existing targets to 14GW overall, with more than 6GW in Scottish Territorial Waters (STW). The large scale development of offshore wind represents one of the biggest opportunities for sustainable economic growth in Scotland for a generation. With the natural comparative advantage we have it is anticipated that offshore wind development could provide a huge economic success story for Scotland, with projected maximum investment in offshore wind of approximately £30bn in Scotland over the next decade, and the creation of upwards of 20,000 jobs by 2020. Scotland is also well placed to capture one third of the total UK supply chain market, potentially securing an additional £30bn of investment. Development and investment on this scale is similar to the emergence of Scotland’s oil industry in the 1970s.
As a result, this Plan considers the potential of STW to accommodate offshore wind energy developments from a national perspective, making proposals for the short, medium and long term. For the purposes of the Plan, the short term means 2010-2010, medium term is 2020-2030 and long term extends beyond 2030. Marine Scotland will review the Plan after 2 years, and update and revise it as appropriate after this period.
A non-technical summary, including details of how you can respond to the Scottish Government's proposals, can be found here. Replies to this consultation must be received by 16th August 2010. The plan outlines the short, medium and long term proposals for wind energy across Scotland, including the Solway Firth.
Short term proposals include those announced by The Crown Estate in January 2009 which include 2 sites, at Wigtown Bay and adjacent to Robin Rigg, as part of a 10-site Scotland wide proposal for wind farm sites.
Medium term proposals for the period 2020-2030 includes further assessment of 25 identified Scotland-wide options for development, and within the Solway area include
SW1 - East of Port Patrick avoiding the exclusion areas.
SW2 – South west of the Mull of Galloway bounded by exclusion areas and the 12nm limit.
SW3 – East of SW2 to the south of Luce Bay.
SW4 - East of SW3 in an area with fewer environmental sensitivities between two exclusion areas
SW5 – East of SW4 and south of Wigtown Bay in and area with fewer environmental sensitivities bounded by exclusion areas.
SW6 – South of Dundrennan and the MoD training exclusion area.
Long term options support further consideration of any of the short or medium term options which have not been implemented at that stage. Further consideration should also be given to development in the remainder of Scottish Territorial Waters. The Scottish Government is committed to reviewing the plan every 2 years, in recognition of the fast pace of change within the offshore wind sector and marine environment.
Offshore wind farm licensing in Scotland: Robin Rigg offshore case study - Scottish Government publication about Robin Rigg's early history
E.On's Robin Rigg wind farm development web site page - some facts and figures about the Robin Rigg wind farm
Crown Estate's press release - The Crown estate announce awards for offshore windfarms within Scottish Territorial waters (Feb 09)
Windfarms in Scottish Waters - facts, figures and companies regarding the 10 sites from the Crown Estate's web site
Scottish Offshore Wind - Award of Exclusivity Agreements - map of the locations of the proposed 10 wind farm developments from the Crown Estate's web site
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark - press release regarding Dong's potential development of the Wigtown Bay windfarm