Hoy - Initial Launch Event
A public meeting was held in Hoy on 30 April 2018 to announce the next phase of a project looking at how a large scale wind farm could generate significant income and community benefit for Orkney.
The meeting heard that after assessing a number of potential sites, the Council planned to undertake a detailed investigation to see if land to the west of Lyness would be suitable for a substantial wind energy development.
The site the Council planned to look at in more detail lay to the south of Wee Fea, the hill behind Lyness which contains underground wartime oil tanks. The landowner had consented to investigation work being carried out.
Bird and ground surveys were carried out over the following months as part of the site investigation work and it was planned that wind measuring equipment will be installed in due course.
In addition, a grid connection had been applied for. As this can be a lengthy process, it was important to do this well ahead of any decision being made on whether to submit a full planning application.
The meeting heard that a grid connection for the project would depend on upgrades between Orkney and the Scottish mainland. Latest estimates suggested that these could be in place by 2022. This would represent the earliest date the wind farm could be operational.
An initial assessment indicated that the site could house up to 30 wind turbines each of 3 to 3.5 megawatt (MW) capacity. These figures were likely to change as the site investigation work is undertaken.
As the wind farm, if it went ahead, would have had the capacity to generate more than 50 MW of electricity, any planning application would have been considered and decided by the Scottish Government.
It was subsequently announced in January 2019 that the plans have been amended following consideration of the site’s proximity to the national scenic area and residential properties, bird sensitivities and the location of communication masts in the area.
The display boards that were on show at this April 2018 meeting are available from the Related Downloads section of this web page.
