The Strathy South Wind Farm is being developed in north-east Sutherland, in the Scottish Highlands, the UK.
The 208MW onshore wind farm is being developed by UK-based SSE Renewables.
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The company took the final investment decision (FID) on the renewable project in December 2024. The development will entail a total capital expenditure investment of around £400m by SSE Renewables.
Main construction works are slated to begin in early 2025, with commercial operations expected to commence in late 2027.
Once operational, Strathy South will generate enough renewable electricity to power around 200,000 homes annually.
Strathy South Wind Farm Location
The Strathy South Wind Farm will be located around 12km south of Strathy Village in Sutherland, south of the existing operational Strathy North Wind Farm.
The site includes an area of approximately 1,785 hectares (ha), within the Strathy South conifer plantation.
Background
SSE first proposed a 77-turbine wind farm at Strathy South, a commercial forestry plantation, in 2007. The site is located a few kilometres south of the company’s existing 33-turbine Strathy North Wind Farm.
After addressing environmental concerns and further consultation and design improvements, an amended proposal for a 47-turbine project was submitted to the Scottish Government in July 2013.
This was later reduced to 39 turbines in 2014 to minimise environmental impact, particularly on peatland and bird habitats.
In November 2021, Scottish Ministers granted consent for the construction and operation of a wind farm comprising 35 turbines with a maximum tip height of 200m.
In the UK’s fifth Contract for Difference (CfD) Allocation Round in September 2023, Strathy South Wind Farm secured a CfD for 100% of total capacity.
Strathy South Wind Farm Details
The Strathy South Wind Farm will comprise 35 turbines. The 6.2MW turbines will have a maximum tip height of 200m and a rotor diameter of up to 162m, along with associated crane pads.
The turbines are expected to be sited on steel reinforced concrete foundations. During the construction phase, crane hardstanding areas will be built from semi-permeable crushed stone would be required adjacent to each turbine.
Construction activity will also include building up to 31km of access tracks.
Other site infrastructure will include watercourse crossings; substation; and up to seven borrow pits.
Temporary infrastructure such as lay down areas to store turbine components; construction compounds; and batching plant will be developed during the construction.
The wind turbines will generate electricity from wind speeds between 3 metres per second (m/s) – 25m/s, with maximum output typically above 13 to 14m/s.
All the rotors would turn in the same direction.
The substation will collect the renewable power generated by the wind turbines and transmits it to the high-voltage grid.
According to the updated plan, Strathy South Wind Farm will be routed through Strathy North substation.
Additionally, turbines were repositioned to avoid sensitive areas such as deep peat, moved further from the south and east forest edges to increase the distance from designated sites, and set back 70m from watercourses.
A bird corridor was also established within the site, and the Habitat Management Plan prioritised peatland restoration both on-site and in the surrounding area.
Although the turbine tip height increased, overall visibility within the surrounding landscape remained minimal.
The construction of the wind farm is expected to be completed in 24 months.
Contractors Involved
Danish firm Vestas will deliver 35 V162-6.2 wind turbines for the Strathy South project. The scope of work includes the supply, delivery, installation, and commissioning of the turbines.
The V162-6.2 MW is designed for low to medium wind sites. With a rotor diameter of 162m, the turbines have a swept area of 20,612m2.
Igne, which delivers site investigation and drilling services for construction and infrastructure projects, conducted an extensive site investigation for the Strathy South Wind Farm.
Drilling operations were conducted utilising Igne’s low ground pressure fleet of Morookas and BV Hagglunds, while local firm John MacKay provided excavators.
