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Pentland floating wind farm developers cut number of turbines
Credit: By Alan Hendry | John O'Groat Journal | 30 June 2022 | www.johnogroat-journal.co.uk ~~
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Translate: FROM English | TO English
The developers of a wind farm off the north coast of Caithness have reduced the number of turbines by three after taking account of local concerns over visual impact.
Pentland Floating Offshore Wind Farm (PFOWF) announced today that the maximum number of turbines will be seven rather than 10, while at the same time the project area is being cut by 50 per cent.
A public information update will be launched online next week to set out the changes.
The wind farm will be located around 6.5 kilometres off Dounreay and the turbines will have a maximum blade-tip height of 300 metres.
The changes to the scheme follow stakeholder engagement and community consultations ahead of the development’s consent application submission to Marine Scotland later in the summer.
Project director Richard Copeland said: “Following consultation events held in May, it was clear the key concerns identified were around any visual impacts of the project.
“We’ve taken this feedback on board and, following progression of our environmental impact assessment and survey and design work, we’ve addressed this and will reduce the overall project area by half and the maximum number of turbines present from 10 to seven.
“These changes will mean the turbines are more compact, reducing the spread of turbines from views along the coastline.
“The reduction in the number of turbines is possible due to advancements in wind turbine generator technology which mean with fewer turbines we can still deliver 100MW of clean energy, enough to power around 70,000 homes, 65 per cent of those in the Highland Council area.
“The changes demonstrate our dedication to ensuring Pentland is developed in an environmentally sensitive way, remains considerate of the concerns of the community and is complementary to our proposed community benefit fund which will help to ensure local residents benefit economically and socially from the project.”
PFOWF will launch its public information update at www.openplans.uk/pentland on Monday.
Meanwhile, the first scholarships from the project’s education and training fund to support skills in science, technology, engineering and mathematics have been awarded to Fern Mackay, Rachel May (both Thurso High School) and Heather Mackay (Farr High).
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