Giant Offshore Wind Farms Show Potential to Replace Jobs and Revive Local Economies in Scotland
Photo of Beatrice wind farm off the coast of Scotland. Photo: Anna Gowthopre | PA
The United Kingdom plans to expand offshore wind energy within the next decade, aiming to source enough electricity from wind to power every home in the UK. The UK’s giant offshore wind farms, many of which tower over the North Sea off the coast of Scotland, prove more promising to European investors than oil and fossil fuel projects. These farms produce extraordinary amounts of clean energy while helping to provide jobs and revitalize economies in Scotland.
The UK currently has 43 offshore wind farms, many of which replaced jobs from the oil and fossil fuel industry. Scotland’s giant offshore wind farm Beatrice replaced an offshore oil field causing some job loss, but employees found their skills transferable to the work Beatrice requires. Their task involves maintaining Beatrice’s 84 behemoth wind turbines spread across 50 square miles of water.
UK jobs supported by oil fell by half in the past decade. Scottish workers who depended on these jobs found the switch to wind energy jobs no less challenging, requiring twelve-hour days offshore, yet more rewarding than staying away from family for extended periods on oil rigs. Jobs in maintaining and supplying equipment for wind turbine farms increased to 31,000 in the UK.
Beatrice farm alone produces enough electricity to power 400,000 homes, contributing to Britain’s 10 percent of wind or sea-powered electricity. On particularly windy days, not uncommon for the North Sea, wind energy can power almost 50 percent of Britain’s electricity. Considering the UK’s total number of offshore wind farms and their plans for expansion, the goal of powering every UK home with wind power by 2030 may prove feasible.
Wind turbines generate electricity through a generator inside the turbine that converts wind energy to mechanical power, producing approximately 99 percent less carbon than coal plants and natural gas sources and 75 percent less carbon than solar power. The farms depend on the weather and produce some carbon from their construction, but nevertheless provide one of the cleanest energy sources.
Companies including SSE, BP, and Shell received 2,700 square miles of seabed for wind farms under a project called Scotwind that will receive investments of around £100 billion. Investments in offshore wind farms like Beatrice were £6.7 billion in 2021, 3 billion more than investment for oil in the UK. Beatrice cost £2.5 billion to build and serves as one of Scotland’s largest giant wind farms. Beatrice’s enormous success inspired investors to support more giant wind farms, such as SSE and French company TotalEnergies’ £3 billion project Seagreen. Seagreen is currently under construction and will have twice the power of Beatrice.
Turbine jackets for Scotland’s next giant wind farm in Port of Nigg. Photo Courtesy of SSE.
The expansion of wind energy in the UK favors offshore wind farms over onshore. The government imposed restrictions on further construction of onshore wind farms, causing a 94 percent decrease in construction. Onshore wind turbines disturb locals with their noise, take up a lot of land, and can disrupt bird flocks. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak plans to maintain the restrictions on onshore wind construction and focus efforts on offshore wind farm expansion as they produce less disturbances.
Offshore wind farms generate massive profits, help local economies and lower energy bills. Scotland’s Beatrice made £218 million in profits last year, a percentage of which went to revitalizing its neighboring town of Wick. Facing higher power bills due to Russian sanctions on fossil fuels, many citizens find the cost effectiveness of local wind-sourced electricity favorable. The benefits of offshore wind farms in the UK attract citizens, investors, and politicians alike, making them instrumental to the UK’s clean energy goals.