Scotland Greenlights SSE’s 4.1 GW Berwick Bank Offshore Wind Farm

Share this article

The Scottish government has granted a consent order for SSE Renewables’ Berwick Bank in the UK, which, if fully developed, would become the world’s largest offshore wind farm.

The Section 36 consent determination by Scottish ministers approves the project’s main offshore wind array in the outer Firth of Forth off the East Lothian coast.

The decision represents the last major consent necessary for the wind farm to proceed and is the culmination of more than a decade of development work by SSE Renewables on the project’s design, according to the developer.

Delivery of Berwick Bank will now be subject to SSE securing a contract for new low-carbon offshore wind power under the UK’s Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme , as well as reaching a final investment decision.

“The Scottish Government’s decision to grant a consent order for Berwick Bank Offshore Wind Farm is hugely welcome. At over 4GW of potential capacity, Berwick Bank can play a pivotal role in meeting the mission of Clean Power 2030 for the UK and achieving Scotland’s decarbonisation and climate action goals,” said Stephen Wheeler , Managing Director of SSE Renewables.

“As the UK’s clean energy champion, SSE now looks forward to the UK Government delivering the most ambitious CfD scheme yet through the upcoming AR7 auction round.”

The Berwick Bank project is planned to be built in the outer Firth of Forth and Firth of Tay, approximately 38 kilometres east of the Scottish Borders coastline at St. Abb’s Head and 48 kilometres off the East Lothian coastline.