Moray Offshore Windfarm (East) Limited  – known as Moray East – announced that, following completion of works, it has achieved its full contracted output of 900 MW to the UK National Transmission Grid.    

The windfarm has been able to produce electricity while construction was underway, – 1,415 000  MWhrs was supplied from June 2021 to March 2022 – enough to meet the total annual electricity needs of all households in Aberdeen and Edinburgh.

Enrique Alvarez, Project Director for Moray East, said: “Offshore wind has a unique advantage; we don’t have to wait until work has finished to switch on.  Output can start after the first few turbines have been commissioned and increase incrementally as work progresses.  Over the period of 9 months from June last year, as more and more of our 100 turbines were installed, we supplied more and more electricity to the gird – 1,415 000  MWhrs.

While construction was underway, between starting our first turbine and finishing the windfarm, we supplied enough electricity to meet the annual needs of every household in Edinburgh and Aberdeen – with enough left over for most of the County of Moray as well.

This, of course, is our output from a fraction of a year with a fraction of our turbines.  I am delighted to announce that Moray East has now achieved its full contracted output of 900 MW.

Because we are using large turbines offshore, our capacity is comparable with the recently-closed large thermal powerstations like Cockenzie or Hunterston, so we are able to make a big contribution to national energy needs.  We are reliably providing low-cost, low carbon energy, entirely from indigenous resources.

I would like to acknowledge and thank everyone who has contributed to this achievement; from introducing the project as a concept more than a decade ago, to delivering it as today’s reality in shining steel.  Our staff, our contractors, the communities and enterprises of the Moray Firth, their representatives in local and national Government, and the civic, regulatory and planning framework have all learned, diversified and grown so that the new offshore wind industry can be a major part of our energy supply.” 

Ocean Winds, an international company dedicated to offshore wind and created as a joint venture (50:50) between ENGIE and EDPR, is a majority shareholder of Moray East. Dan Finch, Managing Director of Ocean Winds UK said: “The UK urgently needs new low-cost, low-carbon generation, and lots of it.  Offshore wind is the quickest, cheapest way to provide it.  The more offshore wind that is on the grid, the less consumers are exposed to increasing gas prices.

Ocean Winds has a long-term commitment to the Moray Firth.  We are ready to build Moray East’s sister project, Moray West, and we have started the planning and consenting work for our new Caledonia site – also adjacent to Moray East.  The faster we can make those plans reality, the faster we can bring an increasing downward pressure on bills, in contrast to the upward pressure associated with gas.”