The council’s committee met yesterday to consider the windfarm developer’s offshore plans – which are outlined in a comprehensive offshore consent application submitted to Scottish Ministers in October 2023 – and gave the proposal their support.

The offshore plans contain detailed information on how the proposed windfarm will be constructed, alongside additional environmental information which was submitted last year and was praised by Government agency NatureScot for its clarity.

The Highland Council is a key consultee for the multi-billion offshore wind project, which will be located 30km west of the Orkney Mainland and 25km north of the Sutherland coast, and which aims to deliver up to two gigawatts of clean power by 2030.

In June last year, the council approved the project’s onshore application for planning permission in principle – which outlines the underground cables and electrical infrastructure required to connect the windfarm to the national transmission network.

The final decision on the offshore consent will now be made by Scottish Ministers following recommendations by the Marine Directorate Licensing Operations Team (MD-LOT) and taking into account comments made by consultees.

Commenting on the decision, West of Orkney Windfarm development manager Jack Farnham, said: “This is another important milestone for the West of Orkney Windfarm, and we are grateful to The Highland Council for their support.

“This paves the way to full offshore consent which, if secured, would enable us to enter into a forthcoming UK ‘contract for difference’ auction round – which is a vital step in the advancement of both the project and its supply chain.

“The West of Orkney Windfarm is a major energy infrastructure scheme which can bring significant long-term economic benefits to the north of Scotland and beyond.  We will continue to work on achieving the critical remaining project milestones in order to generate clean power by 2030,” Farnham concludes.

The West of Orkney Windfarm is being developed by a joint venture comprising Corio Generation, TotalEnergies and Renewable Infrastructure Development Group (RIDG), once complete the project will have up to 125 turbines on fixed foundations.

The offshore consent submission includes applications for consent under the Electricity Act 1989 and marine licence applications under the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010. Accompanying these is an extensive suite of assessments based on survey data collected over two and a half years.

The developer has already supported a number of initiatives in the north of Scotland, including a £1 million research and development programme being led by EMEC in Orkney, a £900,000 education initiative led by UHI, and a £125,000 Fit 4 Renewables scheme led by ORE Catapult.