Three new ScotWind projects announced

That takes the total maximum possible capacity of all Scotwind bids to more than 28GW. 

Currently, Scotland generates approximately 13GW of energy from renewable sources. 

The First Minister said that even if the developments failed to reach maximum capacity they would “still make an enormous contribution to Scotland’s overall energy mix.” 

The deal should see £56m in option fees coming to the Scottish Government’s coffers.

In her speech, Ms Sturgeon admitted that Scotland’s offshore wind supply chain wasn’t “currently as big as it could or maybe should be”. 

“But all of us can play a part in developing a new industry – not simply to service projects here in Scotland, but also, I hope, to compete for business around the world,” she added.

The First Minister continued: “My hope and expectation and I’m sure that is shared with everyone in this room right now, is that when people look back at the development of Scotland’s offshore wind sector, the Scotwind auction results will be seen as a turning point.  

“That’s partly because of the sheer scale of the projects that are proposed.  

“Scotland currently accounts for around 30% of the UK’s offshore wind jobs. And so if we simply maintain that share, the sector in Scotland could grow in 8 years from around 10,000 jobs to around 30,000 jobs.”  

Ms Sturgeon said that Scottish firms would be among the first in the world “to acquire expertise in the construction and maintenance of floating wind farms.”

She said: “In the longer term, therefore, we should be aiming to emulate our oil and gas supply chain – by developing companies which don’t simply supply the domestic market, but which gain business right around the world.

“We see offshore wind – and the hydrogen production which we hope will be enabled by offshore wind – as one of the most important economic and environmental opportunities we have.  

“It can reduce our carbon emissions, improve our energy security, and create tens of thousands of high-quality jobs. It will bring benefits for all of Scotland – but it will be especially important here in the north east of our country. 

“In fact, it will be a crucial part of how the north east makes the transition, the just transition, from being the oil and gas capital of Europe, to being one of the net zero capitals of Europe.”

The First Minister promised that the government would work closely with “developers, with supply chain companies, and with the wider public sector.” 

That, she stressed, would include the UK Government, particularly over their pledge to spend £31 million on floating offshore wind projects.

One of the key challenges is around ports and harbours, many will need restructuring, which requires major investment. 

Speaking at the summit ahead of the First Minister, Sir Ian Wood, warned that failing to grow port capacity would see “significant work will go outside Scotland.”

Already, much of the manufacturing for offshore wind projects in the UK takes place overseas 

The First Minister said: “The infrastructure improvements we need to see won’t happen instantly. But they do need to happen rapidly.”

She said the new Strategic Investment Model being developed by government and industry through the Scottish Offshore Wind Energy Council would allow decisions to be made quickly and “ should help to enable those rapid improvements.”  

Ms Sturgeon added: “Right now- as households and businesses are facing up to huge increases in their energy bills - the value of large-scale cost-effective sources of energy is more obvious than it has been at any time in the last generation.”

She said: “It is no exaggeration to say that offshore wind, along with hydrogen development and carbon capture and storage, will have a huge impact on Scotland’s economy over the next 50 years.  We absolutely must take full advantage of this opportunity.”

Outlining the challenges for the sector, Sir Ian, said there needed to be a “rationalising” of the regulatory bodies involved. He also called for the National Grid and Ofgem to work together to produce the "essential grid capacity where we are way short for the next 10 years."

He also said the industry had a “range of consenting, environmental, military, fishing, birds, protection of local communities, and other issues to face up to.”

“And I really hope every effort will be made to get the best possible collaboration and co-operation between Scotland and England in tackling these major joint problems,” he added.

Colin Palmer, the director of marine at Crown Estate Scotland, hailed the news of the three new ScotWind developments as “a fantastic result for Shetland and for Scotland”.

He added: “These projects have significant potential to really boost Scotland’s progress towards its net-zero targets, including in relation to the opportunity around green hydrogen.

“Taking these three into account, the 20 ScotWind projects now total up to 27.6GW with initial supply chain commitments indicating an average of £1.4 billion investment in Scotland per gigawatt of capacity built.

“This result is further proof that Scotland is leading globally on offshore wind, deploying new technology and exploiting the potential of hydrogen.”