14 DAY TRIAL // The news just broke that the Scottish Government has been presented with plans for the building of the world's largest wind farm, which is to comprise as many as 339 turbines and serve a whopping 1 million households.
Otherwise put: roughly 40% of all Scottish homes could soon have their electricity demands met by means of this environmentally friendly energy source.
Apparently, the people behind this major project are those from Moray Offshore Renewables Ltd, which is basically a partnership between EDP Renewables and Repsol.
Both these two companies are very keen on promoting the use of renewables in various parts of the world, and it seems that they have now decided to spare no efforts in getting Scotland to green up its energy agenda.
The official website discussing the plans for this new Scottish wind farm reads as follows: “We propose to harness the natural power of the wind in the North Sea using offshore wind turbines to deliver approximately 1 300 MW of generation in the Moray Firth.”
Furthermore, “This output is equivalent to a large conventional thermal powerstation, and so can make a considerable contribution to improving the environment by reducing harmful greenhouse gas emissions.”
In case you were wondering, the costs surrounding the implementation of this project amount to a staggering ₤4.5bn (€5.68bn / $7.11bn), yet sources say that spending this much money on having said 339 turbines installed will result in yearly CO2 emissions being cut by almost 4.5 million tonnes.
The location chosen for erecting of this wind farm is represented by the coast of Caithness, Northern Scotland, and work should commence as early as 2015, provided that the Scottish Government agrees to these plans. According to preliminary estimations, the wind farm should be up and spinning by the year 2020.
Speaking on behalf of EDP Renewables, Dan Finch explained how, “We are developing an opportunity and investing significant sums of money because we see Scotland as the place to develop offshore wind. Our partners Repsol, a multinational Spanish oil company, have joined us in Edinburgh because they think this is the place to be as well.”