Neart na Gaoithe (NnG) wind farm, located 15.5km off the coast of Fife, is now generating power into the national grid.
This marks a significant milestone in the project’s development, helping Scotland and the UK move towards achieving their net zero carbon emissions targets.
When complete, the wind farm will consist of 54 wind turbines generating up to 450 MW of clean, green electricity, enough to power around 375,000* homes. NnG, which is owned by EDF Renewables UK and ESB, will offset over 400,000* tonnes of CO2 emissions each year.
NnG is expected to be completed and fully commissioned by summer 2025. Over the coming months, all 54 turbines will be commissioned.
NnG Project Director, Matthias Haag, said: 'This is great for the project and is a positive step in achieving the country’s net zero targets.
'We have worked closely with the local communities and we thank them for their patience as we’ve progressed towards this milestone. This is the beginning of a new chapter in the life story of NnG as we work to completion.'
Ryanne Burges, Director of Offshore and Ireland for EDF Renewables, commented: 'We are delighted to celebrate this significant milestone for NnG and over the coming months we look forward to even more clean electricity being sent to the grid. NnG is a pivotal project in the EDF Renewables UK and Ireland portfolio as we accelerate towards a net zero future where clean energy powers our lives. It will continue to bring significant benefits to local communities across the east coast of Scotland through support for local projects and initiatives, the supply chain and through local jobs for local people.'
Paul Lennon, Head of Offshore Wind and Hydrogen at ESB added: 'NnG is an important project for ESB and we welcome the much-anticipated export of first power from the project. We look forward to the wind farm becoming fully operational next year. It will contribute to a reduction in carbon emissions from UK electricity generation, play an important part in the economy of the east coast of Scotland and in turn help deliver on ESB’s net zero ambitions.'
NnG has already brought substantial benefits to many local communities in the east of Scotland. This includes supporting 24 community projects to date, such as the Berwickshire Marine Trust, Dunbar Youth Football Club, Crail Garden Co-op and the Anstruther Philharmonic Society.
It has also made great impact within the supply chain locally and wider in Scotland, working with local businesses where possible. This includes Forth Ports at the Port of Dundee, I&H Brown, Briggs Marine and Muir Construction Ltd.
The Operations and Maintenance Base overlooking Eyemouth Harbour continues to embed itself in the local community. There are 27 employees currently working there, many of them local, to bring the project online. Over the 25-year lifespan, around 50 high-quality jobs will be created and based there.
Key highlights in the run up to first generation include:
- Load out of components from the Port of Dundee on the Blue Tern vessel and installation of the first turbines.
- Completion of all drilling and the installation of 54 foundation jackets.
- Installation of three sub stations, two offshore and one onshore at Crystal Rig wind farm in the Lammermuir Hills.
* Based upon the average domestic electricity consumption per home of 3,889 kWh per the energy consumption in the UK (published July 2017) and Renewable-UK offshore wind average load factor at 37.2%.
Source: EDF Renewables
