Scottish government has granted consent for SSE’s Berwick Bank offshore wind farm.

Located around 38km east of the Scottish Borders coastline, the site has the potential to create thousands of jobs and generate power for more than six million homes annually.

Section 36 consent by Scottish ministers approves the project’s main offshore wind farm array in the outer Firth of Forth.

The decision represents the last major consent necessary for the project to proceed and is the culmination of more than a decade of development work by SSE Renewables on the project’s design. 

Delivery will now be subject to SSE securing a contract for new low-carbon offshore wind power under the UK’s Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme, as well as reaching a final investment decision. 

If fully delivered, SSE says Berwick Bank would become the world’s largest offshore wind farm.

Berwick Bank has the potential to create 9,300 direct, indirect and induced jobs in the UK at peak construction – with around 4,650 of these jobs in Scotland. Over the project’s expected lifetime, it is estimated Berwick Bank could inject £8.3bn of value into the UK economy. 

The project could increase Scotland’s current operational renewable electricity capacity by almost 25%, boosting the country’s efforts to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2045. 

Stephen Wheeler, managing director SSE Renewables, said: “The Scottish government’s decision to grant a consent order for Berwick Bank Offshore Wind Farm is hugely welcome.

“At over 4GW of potential capacity, Berwick Bank can play a pivotal role in meeting the mission of Clean Power 2030 for the UK and achieving Scotland’s decarbonisation and climate action goals.

“As the UK’s clean energy champion, SSE now looks forward to the UK Government delivering the most ambitious CfD scheme yet through the upcoming AR7 auction round.

“Berwick Bank has the potential to rapidly scale-up Scotland’s operational renewable energy capacity and can accelerate the delivery of homegrown, affordable and secure clean energy to UK consumers from Scottish offshore wind, helping meet the UK’s clean power ambition by 2030.”