TotalEnergies: World’s deepest fixed-bottom offshore wind farm fully operational

(WO) – TotalEnergies and its partner, SSE Renewables, announced that their Seagreen offshore wind farm is now fully operational and running at its design capacity of 1,075 MW.

Seagreen is a joint venture between TotalEnergies (51%) and SSE Renewables (49%). It is located in the North Sea, some 27 km off the coast of Angus. It is TotalEnergies’ biggest operational offshore wind farm worldwide and the world’s deepest fixed bottom wind farm, with its foundation reaching nearly 60 m below sea level.

The project, which began construction in June 2020, has been completed in around 3 years for a global investment of around $4 billion, globally in line with the expected capex. The development and construction were led, with the support of TotalEnergies, by SSE, which will now operate the offshore wind farm for its expected 25-year lifetime.

The 1,075 MW offshore wind farm has the capacity to generate around 5 terawatt hours (TWh), or enough renewable electricity to power almost 1.6 million homes annually, equivalent to two-thirds of all Scottish homes. Seagreen will also prevent the emission of over 2 million tons of CO2 from fossil fuel electricity generation every year.

Consistently with its business model, TotalEnergies will commercialize, through Seagreen, its share of production through a mix of a long-term contract at guaranteed price, including a 15-year CfD (Contract for Difference) awarded by the UK Government, and a 15-year private CfD with the SSE Group, and short-term sales on the wholesale market.

“This 1 GW project is a new step in delivering our strategy of building a world-class, cost-competitive portfolio of renewable energy to deliver clean, reliable and affordable power to our customers. It will positively contribute to achieving our Integrated Power 12% profitability target and our objective of reaching more than 100 TWh of power generation by 2030,” said Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies.

TotalEnergies’ portfolio in offshore wind has a total capacity of more than 13 GW, with most farms bottom-fixed. These projects are located in the United Kingdom (Seagreen, Outer Dowsing, West of Orkney, Erebus), South Korea (Bada), Taiwan (Yunlin, Haiding 2), France (Eolmed), the United States (Attentive Energy and North Carolina), and Germany (N-12.1 and 0-2.2). The company has also been qualified to participate in competitive tenders in the US, UK, and France, and will participate in tenders in Norway and Poland.

“The Seagreen offshore wind farm is a fantastic example of the work being done to unleash Scotland’s renewable potential, as we seek to lead the world in the transition to net zero,” said the First Minister of Scotland, Humza Yousaf. “This significant milestone for Seagreen is also significant for Scotland, taking us a step closer to creating a net zero energy system that delivers affordable, secure and clean energy. Delivering on our climate obligations is an absolute priority for the Scottish Government – so too is our unwavering commitment to a just transition for workers. We are determined to maximize the economic opportunity Scotland’s offshore wind potential presents, by developing local supply chains, embedding innovation, boosting skills, creating jobs, and benefiting people and communities.”