West of Orkney Windfarm continues progress with Highland Council decision

West of Orkney Windfarm has made further progress in its journey to becoming the first large-scale offshore wind farm off the north coast of Scotland.

At a meeting held on 12 March 2025, The Highland Council gave the green light to the project after confirming that they had no objections to raise regarding the 2 GW development’s offshore planning submission that is currently under consideration by Scottish Government.

This follows The Highland Council’s approval of the West of Orkney Windfarm’s onshore planning submission in June of last year.

The offshore plans contain detailed information on how the proposed windfarm will be constructed, alongside additional environmental information which was submitted last year and was praised by government agency NatureScot for its clarity.

The Highland Council is a key consultee for the multi-billion offshore wind project, which will be located 30km west of the Orkney Mainland and 25km north of the Sutherland coast, and which aims to deliver up to two gigawatts of clean power by 2030.

In June 2025, the council approved the project’s onshore application for planning permission in principle – which outlines the underground cables and electrical infrastructure required to connect the windfarm to the national transmission network.

The final decision on the offshore consent will be now made by Scottish Ministers following recommendations by the Marine Directorate Licensing Operations Team (MD-LOT) and taking into account comments made by consultees.

Commenting on the decision, West of Orkney Windfarm Development Manager Jack Farnham said:

“This is another important milestone for the West of Orkney Windfarm, and we are grateful to The Highland Council for their support.

“This paves the way to full offshore consent which, if secured, would enable us to enter into a forthcoming UK ‘contract for difference’ auction round – which is a vital step in the advancement of both the project and its supply chain.

“The West of Orkney Windfarm is a major energy infrastructure scheme which can bring significant long-term economic benefits to the north of Scotland and beyond.  We will continue to work on achieving the critical remaining project milestones in order to generate clean power by 2030,”

Sharn Ward, Head of Europe at Corio Generation, said:

“West of Orkney Windfarm is a landmark project that we are proud to be developing along with our partners, TotalEnergies and RIDG.

“From being the first offshore wind project to submit for consent under the ScotWind programme, to supporting local education and cultural initiatives and securing approval from key stakeholders such as The Highland Council, we are encouraged by the progress the project continues to make.

“As a major renewable energy development, West of Orkney Windfarm will make a valuable contribution to the UK’s ability to power itself with greener, renewable and more secure sources of energy.”

The West of Orkney Windfarm is being developed by a joint venture comprising Corio Generation, TotalEnergies and Renewable Infrastructure Development Group (RIDG). Once complete, the wind farm will provide enough renewable electricity to meet the needs of approximately two million homes.

The project has already supported a number of initiatives in the north of Scotland, including a £1 million research and development programme being led by EMEC in Orkney, a £900,000 education initiative led by UHI, and a £125,000 Fit 4 Renewables scheme led by ORE Catapult.

For more information, visit West of Orkney Windfarm