THE Port of Nigg has been selected as the marshalling, storage and logistics base for 114 wind turbine foundation structures to be used at the £3 billion Seagreen offshore windfarm.
Seagreen is a joint venture between SSE Renewables and Total. The firms said that the project at the port will create 141 skilled jobs during the peak of construction, with recruitment set to begin in the coming months.
The firms expect foundation installation at Seagreen to commence in the second half of this year and to last for a period of 12 months. The marshalling and logistics activity will see the delivery of Seagreen’s 114 foundation structures to the Highlands port via heavy transport vessels (HTVs), prior to shipping out to the North Sea for installation. After jacket foundations are installed, Vestas V164-10 MW turbines will be positioned on each of the 114 bases.
Scotland’s energy minister, Paul Wheelhouse, said, “I warmly welcome this announcement today. This contract provides a further boost to Scotland’s growing offshore renewables industry, sustaining existing jobs and delivering new, skilled jobs to the area and supporting Scotland’s green recovery from Covid-19 – a high priority of this Government. It is a testament to the skills and expertise of all those who work at the Port of Nigg, and I know the team at Nigg are well-regarded globally for their knowledge in the offshore and marine energy sectors.
“This, coupled with the launch of Crown Estate Scotland’s first ScotWind leasing round, marks a significant step as we push forward with our ambitious and World-leading plans to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045. The Scottish Government is committed to supporting the offshore renewables sector in Scotland and our recent offshore wind policy statement and our sectoral marine plan for offshore wind are both geared towards seeing 11GW of offshore wind generation capacity being installed in Scottish waters by 2030, with scope for further growth beyond that. We are working hard to ensure that we support the supply chain to increase the contract value it secures from these future offshore wind opportunities and this latest contract win will help further enhance the Port of Nigg’s strong track record and capabilities.”
