Electricity was exported for the first time from SSE Renewables’ offshore wind turbine test facility at Hunterston, North Ayrshire.
The Siemens SWT-6.0-154 wind turbine is 177 metres high, and incorporates the latest offshore turbine technology to generate six megawatts (MW) of electricity.
The Hunterston site, on the North Ayrshire coast, has similar wind conditions to those found offshore, as well as access to the Grid and an adjacent jetty for facilitating component deliveries. This makes it an ideal location for turbine manufacturers to test their latest turbine equipment before deploying it offshore.
Ian Flannagan, SSE’s Project Construction Manager , said: “We are busy preparing the site ahead of the second turbine, a Mitsubishi SeaAngel 7MW offshore wind model, arriving in a few months time.”
The project, the UK’s first onshore test site for offshore turbines, is being supported by Scottish Enterprise, the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC) and the Department of Business, Innovations and Skills (BIS).
Construction work continues at the second berth on site to prepare the foundation for the Mitsubishi turbine, which is expected to arrive on site for assembly and commissioning in summer 2014.
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Press release, March 14, 2014; Image: SSE