Energy Isles Shetland submits final plans for North Yell Wind Farm
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Final plans for the proposed Energy Isles wind farm in North Yell have been submitted to the Scottish Government by Energy Isles Shetland.
The Supplementary Environmental Information (SEI) submitted to the Scottish Government represents the final plans for the proposed wind farm which was initially conceived by a group of local businesses in 2012. The group later formed Energy Isles Limited in 2014 to pursue the application which was originally submitted in May 2019. Statkraft was announced as the development partner in October 2019.
The final proposals for the Energy Isles wind farm include 23 turbines, 14 with a tip height of 200m and 9 with a tip height of 180m, with an installed capacity of approximately 160MW. The project is estimated to generate electricity equivalent to the annual consumption of 190,000 homes. A Community Benefit Fund for the project would deliver £800,000 per year, a total of £24m over the 30-year life of the wind farm.
The development and construction phase is expected to bring a total of £20.3m of investment to Shetland.
Charlotte Healey, Project Manager for Statkraft, said: “The Energy Isles wind farm is a very important renewable energy project for Statkraft and I am very proud to see the final plans and Supplementary Environmental Information submitted to the Scottish Government.”
“Working with the initial consortium who conceived and developed this project has been nothing short of inspirational. The support and information we have had from the community has been incredible and they truly see the potential for this project to help Shetland develop a hub for renewable energy.”
Derek Jamieson from Energy Isles Limited said: “It’s been a long hard road to get to this point where the final plans for the Energy Isles wind farm can be submitted. The work by local folk to develop an initial idea from way back in 2012 to today shows the enthusiasm to bring renewable energy to Yell.”
“Throughout this process the project has received strong support from local folk, but we’ve also worked very hard as a team to, where possible, address matters raised by consultees and the wider public so that our final submission reflects a project we hope the communities of the North Isles can be truly proud of.”
The full application submitted to the Scottish Government can be viewed on the project website at www.energyisles-shetland.co.uk and will be open for public comment between 4 September – 12 October 2020 at https://www.energyconsents.scot/.
As part of the community consultation, three separate series of exhibitions have been held as the project has evolved, in June 2018, February 2019 and February 2020. Discussions have also been held locally involving Local Energy Scotland and local people over the possibility of Shared Ownership in the project.
Statkraft is also a member of the Shetland Renewable Development Network (SRDN) and has held 2 Suppliers’ Days, attended by over 100 local businesses.
About the Energy Isles wind farm:
- Energy Consents Unit Reference: ECU00001844
- 23 turbines
- 14 turbines with 200m tip height
- 9 turbines with 180m tip height
- Approximately 160MW installed capacity
- Equivalent to the average annual electricity demand of 197,572 typical homes* *based on average consumption of 3,618 kWh pa. BEIS, 2019