Beatrice Wind Farm
| Beatrice Wind Farm | |
|---|---|
 5 MW wind turbine under construction for Beatrice at Nigg fabrication yard on the Cromarty Firth | |
  Location of Beatrice Wind Farm in Scotland | |
| Location | Moray Firth, North Sea |
| Coordinates | 58°7′48″N 3°4′12″W / 58.13000°N 3.07000°WCoordinates: 58°7′48″N 3°4′12″W / 58.13000°N 3.07000°W |
| Status |
operational (demonstration) proposed 2020 (commercial) |
| Commission date | 2007 |
| Owner(s) |
Scottish and Southern Energy Talisman Energy |
| Power generation | |
| Units operational | 2 × 5 MW (REpower) |
| Nameplate capacity |
10 MW (Evaluation) 588MW planned (Site 6, Scottish Territorial Waters) |
The Beatrice Wind Farm now known as Beatrice Offshore Windfarm Ltd (BOWL) project, is a wind farm close to the Beatrice oil field in the Moray Firth, part of the North Sea off the north east coast of Scotland.
Evaluation project
Beatrice Wind Farm Demonstrator Project was a joint venture between Scottish and Southern Energy and Talisman Energy (UK) to build and operate an evaluation wind farm in the deep water close to the Beatrice Oil field that Talisman Energy is planning on decommissioning in the near future.[1]
Built in 2007, with 2 turbines and a total capacity of 10 MW, it was designed to examine the feasibility of creating a commercial wind farm in deep water and a reasonable distance from the shore. The jacket foundation design was developed by the Norwegian company OWEC Tower AS,[2] and fabricated in Scotland by Burntisland Fabrications. The site is 22 km from the Scottish coast and in 45m of water. The project was proposed to last 5 years.[3] All the electricity generated is fed to the nearby Beatrice Alpha oil platform.
Scottish territorial waters award
In February 2009, the partnership of SSE Renewables and SeaEnergy Renewables, was awarded exclusivity by The Crown Estate to develop the Beatrice offshore wind farm in the Outer Moray Firth just to the north of the existing 2 demonstrator turbines.
Planned expansion
On 23 May 2016 approval was given for a £2.6bn expansion of the wind farm to 84 turbines with a capacity of 588MW of electricity, enough to supply 450,000 homes.[4]
In June 2016 contracts were awarded to the Global Energy Group, in association with Siemens Wind Power, for fabrication and assembly of the turbines at Nigg Energy Park in Ross Shire, and to Wick Harbour for the assembly and transport process. Several other Highland towns are expected to benefit during the construction phase due to the expected influx of workers. Work is set to begin in early 2017.[5]
UK government contract
In April 2014, the UK Energy Secretary Ed Davey announced that the Beatrice Wind Farm would be one of eight projects awarded a “contract for difference” to set the price paid for its power for the next 15 years.[6]
See also
- Wind power in Scotland
- Wind power in the United Kingdom
- List of offshore wind farms in the United Kingdom
- Renewable energy in Scotland
