Scotland government approves development of 100MW offshore wind facility

With a production capacity of 100MW, the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre (EOWDC) comprises 11 wind turbines, and meets energy requirement needs of 49,000 homes in Aberdeen.

Scottish Energy, Enterprise and Tourism Minister Fergus Ewing, commenting on the approval, remarked that the new project would give the country an opportunity to test new technologies and boost its growth.

"The Centre will also generate up to 100 MW, enough electricity to meet the electricity needs of almost half the homes in Aberdeen City. It secures Aberdeen’s place as the energy capital of Europe, "said Ewing.

"In consenting this application I have put in place a number of conditions to mitigate a range of impacts," Ewing added.

The application seeking the approval was registered with Marine Scotland in August 2011.

It took 19 months to grant the approval, after the government body undertook two-stage formal public consultation process.

"The Application was received in August 2011 and consultation undertaken. Supplementary Environmental Information Statement submitted in August 2012 and a second round of consultation undertaken," the statement issued by the Government of Scotland added.

"The Scottish Government is committed to the successful and sustainable development of an offshore wind sector, which could lead to a potential generation of over £7 billion to Scotland’s economy and support up to 28,000 direct jobs and a further 20,000 indirect jobs by 2020," noted Ewing.

AOWFL, which is developing the centre, is a joint venture between Vattenfall Wind Power (VWPL) and Aberdeen Renewable Energy Group (AREG). VWPL owns majority 75% stake, while AREG owns the remaining.

Meanwhile, the project is partly funded by the European Union which awarded the EOWDC a grant of up to €40m under the European Energy Programme.

The fund was secured by the development consortium comprising AOWFL, VWPL, AREG and Technip UK.