The development of the Berwick Bank offshore wind farm in Scotland could benefit the country's economy by as much as £4.1 billion over the life of the project, while reducing carbon dioxide emissions by millions of tonnes a year, according to a new report quantity. Located 40km off the East Lothian coast, the wind farm is in the development stage and is being advanced by SSE Renewables.

Once completed, possibly by 2030, the project has the potential to provide up to 4.1 GW of installed capacity, making Berwick a major contributor to meeting the Scottish government's target of 11 GW of additional offshore wind supply by 2030, the developer said By.

Research conducted by BVG Associates shows that at the peak construction period in 2026, the project could create around 4,650 direct, indirect and induced jobs in Scotland and the UK, adding around £8.3bn to the wider UK economy.

Project Director Alex Meredith said: 'It is clear that if we get consent to work with Berwick Bank, it will greatly facilitate the offshore wind supply chain and encourage large-scale investor participation in the industry in Scotland. Agreeing on a project of this scale could deliver the change we need to see in Scotland to unlock investment.

The analysis considers the potential of the project based on an enhanced UK supply scenario, which includes all sound procurement decisions for local, Scottish and UK supply, which truly illustrates the huge benefit to the economy if Berwick Bank is approved. Keywords: engineering news, overseas news

In 2021, SSE Renewable Energy announced the merger of the two projects into one development, the Berwick Bank Wind Farm. The company has since made two changes to the overall size of the project before applying for planning consent to the Scottish minister in the fourth quarter of 2022.Editor/XingWentao