Buchan Offshore Wind has reached a major milestone by submitting its offshore consent applications to Scottish Ministers for a proposed floating offshore windfarm that could spark significant investment in Scotland’s ports and bring long term jobs to Aberdeenshire and the Highlands. 

Buchan Offshore Wind is the developer of a major floating offshore wind farm 75 km to the northeast of Fraserburgh on the Aberdeenshire coast. It secured the seabed development rights from Crown Estate Scotland as part of the ScotWind leasing process in 2022. 

With an anticipated capacity of close to 1GW and a connection date of 2033, the project would have up to 70 turbines and offers the potential to power more than one million homes.

Its development would see more than £900 million invested in Scotland’s manufacturing sector and supply chain, with around 2,900 jobs in Scotland at the peak of construction and close to 300 ongoing jobs during operation. 

The project has identified BW Ideol’s patented Damping Pool® floating substructure as its preferred foundation option, with BW Ideol working actively to establish a manufacturing centre at the Ardersier Energy Transition Facility being developed at the former oil and gas fabrication yard on the Moray Firth.  

The project is yet to select its operations base but is actively engaging with a number of ports in the north-east of Scotland as it seeks to identify the most suitable location for its operations and maintenance hub.

Project Director Clare Lavelle said:
“Our vision is to develop a world-leading floating offshore windfarm that will deliver large-scale manufacturing in Scotland, support thousands of new jobs, and drive progress towards the UK’s and Scotland’s offshore wind targets. 

“We are committed to manufacturing our floating substructures in Scotland, which would drive a significant proportion of the project’s positive economic impacts.

“Over the past three years, the project team has hosted nine public events, engaging with residents across Aberdeenshire and the Buchan coast, as well as meeting with businesses and organisations across the region. 

 “These events have provided vital opportunities for local people to contribute to the project’s development, in order to reflect regional priorities and deliver long-term social and environmental benefits,” Lavelle says.

The submission includes applications for consent under the Electricity Act 1989 and marine licence applications under the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010. Accompanying these is an extensive suite of assessments based on survey data collected and analysed over three and a half years. 

“Submission of our offshore consent application is a critical milestone in unlocking the significant inward investment this ambitious project will bring, and we would encourage everyone with an interest in the project to view and comment on our application,” Lavelle concludes.

Buchan Offshore Wind

Buchan Offshore Wind is the developer of a major floating offshore wind farm 75 km to the northeast of Fraserburgh on the Aberdeenshire coast.

With an anticipated capacity of close to 1GW and a connection date of 2033, the project would feature up to 70 turbines and has the potential to generate the equivalent of the annual power needs of some 1.4 million British homes.

Buchan Offshore Wind Farm represents a major investment in Scotland’s energy industry and Just Transition.

According to an independent study by Biggar Economics, the project will create close to 2,900 Scottish jobs at the peak of construction, driven in large part by the manufacture of concrete foundations at the Port of Ardersier.

The development is projected to spend more than £900m with Scottish suppliers during development, construction and installation, and to add more than £2billion to the Scottish economy over its lifetime.

It would spend more than £80m a year with Scottish suppliers during operations and maintenance, supporting some 500 jobs across the Scottish supply chain on an ongoing basis over its thirty-year lifetime.