Wind energy: 100 generating wind turbines at Clyde Wind Farm

Staff at SSE Renewables Clyde Wind Farm are celebrating after the 100th turbine began exporting wind powered electricity to the grid.

Clyde, one of Europe’s biggest single consented wind farms with 152 turbines, is located between Biggar and Moffat in South Lanarkshire, Scotland.

Construction began in 2009 with the project expected to cost around GBP500m. It will have supported around 400 jobs at peak construction and SSE Renewables estimates the local economy will have benefited by around GBP6m and the economy throughout Scotland by around GBP65m.

Brian McFarlane, Project Director, said ‘This is a very significant milestone for the project and a real testament to the hard work, dedication and determination of everyone involved. We have a great team here. However, we can’t rest on our laurels and our focus now is on getting the remaining 52 turbines up in the air, commissioned and generating clean, wind powered energy.’

The 152 Siemens 2.3 MW wind turbine generators are expected to produce enough electricity to power around 279,000 homes. Noel Cummins, SSE’s community liaison manager, said ‘This is a fantastic achievement and one that everyone involved can be proud of.’ Construction at Clyde is expected to be complete around the end of the summer.

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