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This was the first time such large offshore wind turbines had been tested, and the first time any wind turbine generators have been assembled in such deep (44&nbsp;metres) water.<ref name=reuk>[http://www.reuk.co.uk/Worlds-Largest-Wind-Turbine-Generator.htm World's Largest Wind Turbine Generator]</ref> Such large wind turbine generators are ideally suited to the offshore environment due to high consistent wind speeds and minimal turbulence. According to historical measures of wind speeds at the Beatrice offshore location, it is expected that the turbines will run 96% of the time (8440 hours per year), and at 10 MW full power 38% of the time (3300 hours per year).<ref name= reuk/>
This was the first time such large offshore wind turbines had been tested, and the first time any wind turbine generators have been assembled in such deep (44&nbsp;metres) water.<ref name=reuk>[http://www.reuk.co.uk/Worlds-Largest-Wind-Turbine-Generator.htm World's Largest Wind Turbine Generator]</ref> Such large wind turbine generators are ideally suited to the offshore environment due to high consistent wind speeds and minimal turbulence. According to historical measures of wind speeds at the Beatrice offshore location, it is expected that the turbines will run 96% of the time (8440 hours per year), and at 10 MW full power 38% of the time (3300 hours per year).<ref name= reuk/>


==Large wind farms==
==Large wind farms== Jack Hughes


===Black Law Wind Farm===
===Black Law Wind Farm===

Revision as of 11:38, 23 January 2013

Whitelee Wind Farm with the Isle of Arran in the background.
Ardrossan Wind Farm from Portencross, just after sunrise

Wind power in Scotland is the country's fastest growing renewable energy technology, with 2574 MW of installed capacity as of April 2011.[1] The Robin Rigg Wind Farm is a 180 MW development completed in April 2010, which is Scotland's first offshore wind farm, sited on a sandbank in the Solway Firth.[2][3] The United Kingdom's largest wind farm (322 MW) is at Whitelee in East Renfrewshire, which has a 217 MW extension under construction, set for completion in 2012.[4] The Clyde Wind Farm is a 548 megawatt (MW) wind farm under construction near Abington in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, which will be Europe's largest onshore wind farm when completed.[5] Two very large offshore wind turbines (5 MW each) are located in the Moray Firth. There are many other large onshore wind farms including some, both planned and operating, which are in community ownership. The siting of turbines is very often an issue. Certain surveys have shown high levels of community acceptance for wind power in Scotland.,[6][7][8] while others disagree with the premise of such surveys, and consider them filled with loaded questions biased toward the developers. Such developers often try to offer large sweeteners to local communities at parish council level, for the adverse effect of development to the amenity of their particular local area.[9][10][11][12][13] There is further potential for expansion, especially offshore given the high average wind speeds, and a number of large offshore wind farms are planned.

The Scottish Government has a target of generating 31% of Scotland's electricity from renewable energy by 2011, and 100% by 2020, which was raised from 50% in September 2010.[14] The majority of this is likely to come from wind power.[15]

Importantly, the installed capacity statistics quoted in this article are peak capacities. The turbines may often generate much less power than this when there is not much wind, and therefore require back up from other types of generator. See "wind variability".

Current offshore wind turbines

REpower 5 MW wind turbine under construction at Nigg fabrication yard on the Cromarty Firth

Scotland's first offshore wind turbine was placed near the Beatrice Oil Field, 15 miles off the east coast in the Moray Firth, North Sea, in August 2006. This was the world's largest wind turbine at the time, an REpower 5M, with a maximum output of 5MW. A second identical turbine joined it and the wind farm began supplying electricity in August 2007.[16] As of February 2010, Beatrice Wind Farm is the deepest and northernmost offshore wind installation in the world.[17]

This was the first time such large offshore wind turbines had been tested, and the first time any wind turbine generators have been assembled in such deep (44 metres) water.[18] Such large wind turbine generators are ideally suited to the offshore environment due to high consistent wind speeds and minimal turbulence. According to historical measures of wind speeds at the Beatrice offshore location, it is expected that the turbines will run 96% of the time (8440 hours per year), and at 10 MW full power 38% of the time (3300 hours per year).[18]

==Large wind farms== Jack Hughes

Black Law Wind Farm

Two of the wind turbines at the Black Law Wind Farm

The 54-turbine Black Law Wind Farm has a total capacity of 124 MW.[19] It is located near Forth in Lanarkshire and was built on old opencast coalmine site, with an original capacity of 97 MW[20] from 42 turbines. It employs seven permanent staff on site and created 200 jobs during construction. A second phase saw the installation of a further 12 turbines. The project has received wide recognition for its contribution to environmental objectives.[20] Over the period April 2009 to March 2010, Black Law Wind Farm produced 19.19% of its rated capacity.[21]

Braes of Doune Wind Farm

The Braes of Doune Wind Farm opened in 2007 and is located close to Stirling. The wind farm has 36 Vestas 2 megawatt wind turbines. The farm was built and is run by Airtricity.[22]

Crystal Rig Wind Farm

Crystal Rig Wind Farm is an operational onshore wind farm located on the Lammermuir Hills in the Scottish Borders region of Scotland. When it was completed in May 2004 it was the largest wind farm in Scotland. As a result of 3 extensions it is currently the 2nd largest wind farm in the UK, both in terms of nameplate capacity and number of turbines. The whole site has 85 turbines and a nameplate capacity of 200.5 MW.

Farr Wind Farm

Farr Wind Farm is located some 10 miles south of Inverness, and comprises 40 wind turbines with a total installed capacity of 92 MW. Every year the wind farm generates enough clean electricity to meet the average annual needs of some 54,000 homes.[23]

Hadyard Hill Wind Farm

Hadyard Hill wind farm. Located on the B734 between Old Dailly and Barr.

Hadyard Hill Wind Farm, owned and operated by Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE), became the first wind farm in the UK with a capacity of over 100 MW. The 120 MW, 52-turbine wind farm in South Ayrshire cost £85 million and in a year generates enough electricity to power 80,000 homes, sufficient to supply every household in a city the size of York. The production of zero carbon electricity at the wind farm is expected to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide by almost 300,000 tonnes a year, equivalent to taking 70,000 cars off the road.[24]

Robin Rigg Wind Farm

The Robin Rigg Wind Farm is a 180 MW development completed in April 2010, which is Scotland's first offshore wind farm, sited at Robin Rigg, a sandbank midway between the Galloway and Cumbrian coasts in the Solway Firth. It has 60 Vestas V90-3MW wind turbines.[2][3]

Whitelee Wind Farm

The 322 MW Whitelee Wind Farm was completed ahead of schedule in May 2009. It is Europe's largest onshore wind farm, built by Scottish Power Renewables. The wind farm uses 140 Siemens 2.3-MW wind turbines.[15]

Whitelee Wind Farm has a 75 turbine extension under construction, which will add an additional 217 MW of capacity. Work on this extension is set for completion in 2012.[4]

Under construction or proposed

Clyde Wind Farm

The Clyde Wind Farm is a 548 megawatt (MW) wind farm under construction near Abington in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. When completed, it will be Europe's largest onshore wind farm. The 152-turbine project by Scottish and Southern Energy,[5] which was approved by the Scottish Parliament in July 2008, capable of powering 320,000 homes, and will be larger than the 322 MW Whitelee Wind Farm near Glasgow.[25] Turbines will be built either side of the M74 motorway.[26] Construction of the wind farm, which is budgeted for £600 million, started in early 2009 and expected to finish in 2012.[27]

Viking Wind Farm

The Viking Wind Farm in the Shetland Islands was first proposed as a 600MW 150 turbine project in 2009. After reduction in scope due to environmental concerns about effects of wildlife and peat bog carbon release during construction, as well as potential interference with equipment at Scatsta Airport the scheme was approved in 2012 as a 103 turbine scheme of 370 MW.[28] The scheme is expected to achieve high capacity factors due to wind conditions in Shetland, as the Burradale achieves over 50% efficiency.[29]

Offshore wind farms

In January 2010 contracts were awarded for a major expansion of offshore wind power in the seas around Scotland. Moray Offshore Renewables will develop offshore wind power in the Moray Firth, and SeaGreen Wind Energy will develop offshore wind in the Firth of Forth. These developments could lead to 1,000 new wind turbines generating nearly 5,000 MW of power. Jobs "could also be created in manufacturing, research, engineering, installation, operation and services".[30]

Community interface

Community ownership of wind farms

See also: Community wind energy
The wind turbines at Findhorn, which make the Ecovillage a net exporter of electricity.

Community-owned schemes in Scotland include one on the Isle of Gigha. The Heritage Trust set up Gigha Renewable Energy to buy and operate three Vestas V27 wind turbines, known locally as The Dancing Ladies or Creideas, Dòchas is Carthannas (Gaelic for Faith, Hope and Charity).[31] They were commissioned on 21 January 2005 and are capable of generating up to 675 kW of power. Revenue is produced by selling the electricity to the grid via an intermediary called Green Energy UK. Gigha residents control the whole project and profits are reinvested in the community.[32]

Findhorn Ecovillage has four Vestas wind turbines which can generate up to 750 kW. These make the community net exporters of renewably generated electricity. Most of the generation is used on-site with any surplus exported to the National Grid.[33]

Boyndie Wind Farm Co-operative is part of the Energy4All group, which promotes community ownership.[34] A number of other schemes supported by Community Energy Scotland are in the pipeline.

Public opinion surveys

In 2003, MORI Scotland was commissioned by the Scottish Executive to undertake a study examining the attitudes of people living close to Sottish wind farms. The survey showed that people living near Scotland’s ten largest wind farms strongly support more of Scotland's energy needs being produced by the wind. 82% wanted an increase in electricity generated from wind power, whilst more than 50% supported an increase in the number of wind turbines at their local wind farm. 20% say their local wind farm has had a broadly positive impact on the area, as opposed to a negative impact (7%).[7]

A survey conducted in 2005, and commissioned by the renewable energy industry, showed that 74% of people in Scotland agree that wind farms are necessary to meet current and future energy needs. When people were asked the same question in a Scottish Renewables study conducted in 2010, 78% agreed. The increase is significant as there were twice as many wind farms in 2010 as there were in 2005. The 2010 survey also showed that 52% disagreed with the statement that wind farms are "ugly and a blot on the landscape". 59% agreed that wind farms were necessary and that how they looked was unimportant. The 2010 study suggests that the majority of people in Scotland are in support of clean energy.However this survey has been widely criticised for its methodology, in that it used a weighting scale such that the opinion those who lived nearer windfarms was rated as of lesser importance, and the wording used in the survey was biased towards obtaining this particular result.[6][35][36]

Community debate

However, concerns over inappropriate siting of turbines has been voiced by groups in Fife, in particular, where the number of planning applications for turbines has risen sharply.[37]

This also is true of Berwickshire, which is home to the second largest windfarm in the UK, Crystal Rig Wind Farm, and where hundreds more turbines are due to be situated, contrary to the wishes of many residents of the county, and the John Muir Trust.[38][39][40]

Tourism impacts

See also: Wind turbines on public display

Some Scottish wind farms have become tourist attractions. According to a 2002 poll carried out by MORI Scotland, "nine out of ten tourists visiting some of Scotland's top beauty spots say the presence of wind farms makes no difference to the enjoyment of their holiday, and twice as many people would return to an area because of the presence of a wind farm than would stay away". The Whitelee Wind Farm Visitor Centre has an exhibition room, a learning hub, a café with a viewing deck and also a shop. It is run by the Glasgow Science Centre.[41]

Aesthetics and landscape issues

The Ardrossan Wind Farm.

Siting of many wind turbines has always been an issue, as most people are concerned about the value of natural landscapes. The John Muir Trust has stated that "the best renewable energy options around wild land are small-scale, sensitively sited and adjacent to the communities directly benefiting from them",[42][43] although even community-owned schemes can prove controversial. For example, a small-scale scheme proposed by North Harris Development Trust has been supported by the John Muir Trust.[44]

The Ardrossan Wind Farm on the west coast of Scotland has been "overwhelmingly accepted by local people"[citation needed]. Instead of spoiling the landscape, they[Who?] believe it has enhanced the area. According to one of the town's councillors: "The turbines are impressive looking, bring a calming effect to the town and, contrary to the belief that they would be noisy, we have found them to be silent workhorses".[45]

Wind variability

Main article: Wind Power variability

Most turbines in the European Union produce electricity at an average of 25% of their rated maximum power due to the variability of wind resources,[46] but Scotland's wind regime provides average capacity factor of 21% or higher on the west and northern coasts. The highest load factor recorded for an onshore windfarm was 40% for the North Rhins windfarm near Stranraer, although most other mainland windfarms are very significantly less than this. A small wind farm on Shetland with five Vestas V47 660 kW turbines recently achieved a world record of 58% capacity over the course of a year. This record is claimed by Burradale windfarm, located just a few miles outside Lerwick and operated by Shetland Aerogenerators Ltd. Since opening in 2000, the turbines at this wind farm have had an average capacity factor of 52% and, according to this report, in 2005 averaged a world record 57.9%.[29][47]

Potential

It is estimated that 11.5 GW of onshore wind potential exists, enough to provide about 45 TWh of energy in a year, allowing for wind variability. More than double this amount exists on offshore sites[48] where mean wind speeds are greater than on land.[49] The total offshore potential is estimated at 25 GW, and although more expensive to install could be enough to provide almost half the total energy used in Scotland.[48]

According to a recent report, the world's wind market offers many opportunities for Scottish companies, with total global revenue over the next five years estimated at £35 billion and continued growth forecast until at least 2025.[50]

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wind power in Scotland.

References

  1. ^ Scottish Renewables
  2. ^ a b Windfarm: Robin Rigg
  3. ^ a b Robin Rigg Offshore Wind FarmProject
  4. ^ a b "Whitelee Wind Farm Update".
  5. ^ a b SSE Clyde Project website
  6. ^ a b "Rise in Scots wind farm support". BBC News. 18 October 2010.
  7. ^ a b Scottish Government (2003). "Public Attitudes to Windfarms: A Survey of Local Residents in Scotland".
  8. ^ Scottish Renewables (22 October 2010). "Scots support wind farms". Sustainable Scotland.
  9. ^ [1] Wind farm Action Group]
  10. ^ Telegraph17th September 2011
  11. ^ Berwickshire News 30th May 2012
  12. ^ Berwickshire News 3rd December 2008
  13. ^ Berwickshire News 5th September 2001
  14. ^ "Target for renewable energy now 80 per cent". Scottish Government. 23 September 2010.
  15. ^ a b Europe's Largest Onshore Wind Farm Is Switched on in Scotland Renewable Energy World, 20 May 2009.
  16. ^ Beatrice Wind timeline
  17. ^ "Beatrice is currently the northernmost and deepest offshore wind farm in the world"
  18. ^ a b World's Largest Wind Turbine Generator
  19. ^ Thousands Flock To Black Law Windfarm Open Day
  20. ^ a b UK's most powerful wind farm could power Paisley
  21. ^ UK Renewable Energy Generation - Summary April 2009 to March 2010
  22. ^ Braes of Doune
  23. ^ Farr Wind Farm
  24. ^ Hadyard Hill becomes the first wind farm in the UK to generate over 100 MW of power
  25. ^ Haworth, Jenny (2008-07-22). "Wind farms: now we've got the biggest in Europe". Retrieved 2008-07-22.
  26. ^ Johnson, Simon (2008-07-21). "Europe's largest onshore wind farm is to be built in Scotland costing £600m". Telegraph.co.uk. Telegraph Media Group. Retrieved 2008-07-22.
  27. ^ "Green light for massive wind farm". BBC News. 2008-07-21. Retrieved 2008-07-22.
  28. ^ Sources:
  29. ^ a b Burradale Wind Farm Shetland Islands
  30. ^ New offshore wind farm contracts announced BBC News, 8 January 2010.
  31. ^ "Let's Talk Renewables" (PDF). HIE. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-04-07. Retrieved 2008-01-06.
  32. ^ "Green Energy press release". greenenergy.uk.com. 26 January 2005. Retrieved 2007-02-01.
  33. ^ Findhorn Ecovillage
  34. ^ Boyndie Co-operative Retrieved 6 July 2007.
  35. ^ "Scots support wind farms". Sustainable Scotland. 22 October 2010.
  36. ^ http://www.windfarmaction.com/public-perceptions-10029.html
  37. ^ East Fife Turbine Awareness
  38. ^ Berwickshire News 27 January 2011
  39. ^ [2]
  40. ^ Scottish Borders Council windfarm applications up to July 1 2012
  41. ^ "Whitelee Windfarm". Scottish Power Renewables.
  42. ^ "What's Your View on Wild Land?". Pitlochry: John Muir Trust. 2006. Retrieved 2007-11-13.
  43. ^ John Muir Trust. "Renewable Energy Policy". Retrieved 2008-04-20.
  44. ^ "North Harris Community Wind Farm Approved". John Muir Trust. 18 February 2008. Retrieved 2008-04-21.
  45. ^ Wind farms are not only beautiful, they're absolutely necessary
  46. ^ "ECN report on Renewables" (PDF). Retrieved 2007-02-04.
  47. ^ Severin Carrell (20 May 2009), "Shetland stirred by giant Viking wind farm plan", The Guardian, retrieved 8 April 2012
  48. ^ a b RSPB Scotland, WWF Scotland and FOE Scotland (February 2006) The Power of Scotland: Cutting Carbon with Scotland's Renewable Energy.
  49. ^ Evaluation of global wind power
  50. ^ Huge potential growth forecast for Scottish wind industry
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