Caledonia Offshore Wind Farm, a proposed project targeting 2GW capacity being developed in the Moray Firth, has published its Onshore Transmission Infrastructure Scoping Report, which outlines plans for the onshore transmission infrastructure which will connect the wind farm to the National Grid.  

The infrastructure will consist of an underground cable landfall site on the West Aberdeenshire coast, a new electricity substation in the vicinity of New Deer and an underground cable route connecting the two. 

The Scoping Report has been submitted to Aberdeenshire Council and pre-application consultation events will be held in various community locations in Aberdeenshire in Spring 2023. 

Catarina Rei, Head of Development for Caledonia Offshore Wind Farm said:
“Caledonia is one of the few ScotWind projects which is geographically able to use AC transmission, rather than the DC technology needed to overcome significant distances from shore.  That means Caledonia can proceed at pace to supply Scotland with local low-cost, low-carbon electricity.

“With the exception of the substation, all of the onshore transmission infrastructure will be underground, so after completion, it will not be visible.  The scoping report identifies a broad corridor for the cable route, which will be refined as part of the Environmental Impact Assessment process and through local engagement

“We will publish details of a series of pre application consultation events in spring to provide the opportunity to discuss our proposals with local communities.

“We have been developing offshore wind generation in the Moray Firth for over a decade, and we pride ourselves in securing high quality planning consents.  The  Scoping Report is the first stage in that process, and we look forward to engagement and discussions with our stakeholders to maintain those high standards”  

About the Caledonia Offshore Wind Farm

2GW capacity
Learnings from Ocean Winds’ legacy in the area will enable the 2GW Caledonia site to produce large-scale green power quickly and cost-effectively.

Powering 2 million homes
It is expected that Caledonia will be capable of meeting the average electricity needs of around 2 million homes.

429km² ScotWind site
Ocean Winds won rights to develop the 429km² site in 2022 as one of 17 new offshore wind farm areas awarded during the ScotWind leasing process.

40km from the coastline
The site is close enough to shore to allow for AC transmission technology, reducing costs further.