19 August 2024
Spiorad na Mara – a proposed offshore wind farm, located approximately 5-13km off the west coast of the Isle of Lewis – has committed to delivering a significant initial Community Benefit Fund, reflecting the unique aspects of the project and aimed at delivering benefits directly into communities on the west of the island.
The commitment follows two years of discussions with the West Side Estates Group (WSEG), which comprises three community-run estates and one privately owned estate on the west side of Lewis, and listening to feedback from the broader community.
“This is a significant milestone for Spiorad na Mara, which underscores our commitment to ensuring that the project leaves a lasting legacy in the communities closest to the project,” said Tanya Davies, Project Director of Spiorad na Mara. “The commitment represents a substantial investment to be made into local communities for the entire duration of the operational lifetime of the project, expected to be at least 35 years, should it progress.”
“We are very grateful to the WSEG for their shared commitment and determination in reaching this stage and helping to ensure that communities on the west coast of the island stand to benefit meaningfully from hosting the proposed project. Now that we have reached this stage, we look forward to working closely with local communities and stakeholders to ensure that local voices are at the heart of shaping and overseeing the responsible management and distribution of the benefits.“
Next steps will involve extensive and meaningful consultation with local communities and stakeholders, including support from an independent specialist company to explore many aspects of the community fund, including:
- Geographical areas of benefit for construction and operational stages
- Types of themes, projects and other initiatives to be supported
- The governance and administration process around the fund
The results from the consultation will be used to inform and put in place a legally binding Community Benefit Agreement.
The community benefit consultation will also include exploring opportunities with communities and stakeholders in other geographic areas on the island, building on discussions which have already taken place and those that are planned.
Communities hosting wind farms have traditionally benefitted from local investment funds. Examples of this can be seen across Scotland and the UK, for offshore and onshore wind projects, where communities and companies have worked in partnership to maximise opportunities available through local investment funds.
Community benefit fund arrangements are separate from the planning process, with no provisions associated with the fund either requiring support for the project or prohibiting any objections to it.
Spiorad na Mara is owned by Northland Power (75.5%) and ESB (24.5%), with Northland leading on the development, construction, and operation.
The project is still in the early stages of development and, subject to all necessary permits and consents being received, Spiorad na Mara could begin construction in 2028 and be operational by 2031.
Further information is available at www.spioradnamara.co.uk.
Contact:
Steve Thomas
Communications Adviser, Northland Power
+44 (0)7359 614 023
steve.thomas@northlandpower.com
Denise Horan
Consultation and Local Engagement Lead
Mobile: +44 (0) 7396 818 000
denise.horan@northlandpower.com
About Spiorad na Mara
Spiorad na Mara is a proposed offshore wind farm, located approximately 5-13 km off the west coast of Lewis. With an expected installed capacity of around 900 MW, it could meet the average annual electricity needs of around 1.2 million1Scottish homes with low-cost renewable electricity and save more than 1.7 million1 tonnes of carbon emissions every year.
Spiorad na Mara is owned by Northland Power (75.5%) and ESB (24.5%), with Northland leading on the development, construction, and operation.
Further information is available at www.spioradnamara.co.uk
1 More than 1.2 million homes powered per annum based on the average Scottish annual household electricity consumption of 3,078 kWh in 2022 (https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/regional-and-local-authority-electricity-consumption-statistics) together with a minimum projected 50% wind load factor and a projected installed capacity of up to 900MW.
About Northland Power
Northland Power is a global power producer dedicated to helping the clean energy transition by producing electricity from clean renewable resources. Founded in 1987, Northland has a long history of developing, building, owning and operating clean and green power infrastructure assets and is a global leader in offshore wind. In addition, Northland owns and manages a diversified generation mix including onshore renewables, efficient natural gas energy, as well as supplying energy through a regulated utility.
Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, with global offices in eight countries, Northland owns or has an economic interest in approximately 3.4GW (net 2.9GW) of operating capacity. The Company also has
a significant inventory of projects in construction and in various stages of development encompassing approximately 12GW of potential capacity.
Publicly traded since 1997, Northland’s common shares, Series 1 and Series 2 preferred shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbols NPI, NPI.PR.A and NPI.PR.B, respectively.
For further information visit www.northlandpower.com.
About ESB
ESB has been Ireland’s foremost energy company since it was established in 1927, driven by an unwavering commitment to power society forward and deliver a net-zero future for our customers and the communities we serve.
ESB is involved in six offshore wind projects in Scotland, which complements a 1,200MW pipeline of onshore wind farms.
As a strong, diversified utility, ESB operates across the electricity market, from generation through transmission and distribution, to supply of customers in addition to using our networks to carry fibre for telecommunications. As at year-end 2022, ESB has a regulated asset base of approximately €12.0 billion (comprising ESB Networks €9.7 billion and NIE Networks €2.3 billion), a 30% share of generation in the all-island market, and supply businesses supplying electricity and gas to over two million customer accounts throughout the island of Ireland and Great Britain. At June 2023, ESB Group employed almost 9,000 people.
