Ready for a clean energy future

By Adam CivicoOctober 15th 2024

Shetland is ready to play a central role in a new clean energy boom, with the prospect of high-quality training, skilled jobs and fulfilling careers in the islands.

Shetland has enjoyed a rewarding relationship with the energy industry since the 1970s. When oil and gas started flowing into Shetland, so did skilled jobs, investment and community funds.

As the world transitions from fossil fuels, the abundant industry knowledge and skills in Shetland mean the community is well-placed to capitalise on emerging opportunities.

The islands’ world-leading wind resources, strategic location and decades of experience have created new development potential, paving the way for fresh investment, new careers, training opportunities and future prosperity. Shetland’s experience delivering nationally significant infrastructure and supporting the energy industry should not be underestimated as the world transitions to net zero.

Major offshore wind farms are likely to be developed near Shetland. Ocean Winds

Decades’ experience

In the 1970s, the Sullom Voe Terminal was built in Shetland’s North Mainland as a regional hub for the nascent North Sea oil industry. Since then, billions of barrels of oil have come ashore at the plant, and Shetland’s supply chain and service industry has developed an unrivalled understanding of how to support the sector in the North Sea and Atlantic.

Fast forward to the 2010s and Shetland was again abuzz with construction activity, as the Shetland Gas Plant was built for European energy firm Total. At the time it was the UK’s biggest infrastructure project since the 2012 Olympics – and the reliability and deep experience of the islands’ supply chain helped ensure it was successfully delivered.

Soon afterwards, the nationally significant onshore Viking Energy Wind Farm was built in Shetland’s Central Mainland. With 103 turbines now generating electricity powered by the islands’ exceptional wind, it is set to be the UK’s most productive onshore wind project, even though others are bigger. Combined with other onshore projects, either constructed or consented, it’s easy to understand why Shetland is seen as a clean energy powerhouse.

Viking Energy and other wind farm arrays in Shetland generate energy at levels impossible elsewhere in the UK. That power is exported to the National Grid via a two-way HVDC interconnector cable.

When tidal generation – Shetland is home to one of the world’s first tidal arrays – and offshore wind are considered, one starts to understand why Shetland will play a crucial role in the UK’s future energy security.

The National Energy System Operator (NESO) understands the immense generation potential in and around Shetland. That helps explain its confirmation of the need, in its "Beyond 2030 Report", to install a second Shetland inter-connector cable which would increase the energy exported from Shetland projects. The electricity regulator Ofgem has subsequently indicated its provisional approval for investment in the link based on a “high degree of confidence” that it will be needed.

As renewable and alternative energy sources, like clean hydrogen and derivative fuels, come to the fore, Shetland is again set to play a pivotal role in the UK energy industry.

That is not just because of the exceptional wind. Other factors stack in Shetland’s favour, including the islands’ location near existing and proposed infrastructure, the well-established and deeply experienced supply chain and engineering industry, and well-equipped harbours that can welcome the world’s biggest, deepest vessels and offer the capability to unload, store and service the huge components needed to develop the next phase of energy projects.

The Viking Energy Wind Farm began generating power in summer 2024. SSE Renewables

With millions of pounds of infrastructure projects in the pipeline, the energy transition and Shetland’s place in it gives firms and organisations the confidence to invest in themselves and the local community.

The message underpinning that belief is that Shetland has the expertise to deliver huge projects successfully and with the most benefit for locals.

In the short- to mid-term, that means investment, income and jobs before and during construction. Longer-term research roles, high-quality training, decades-long careers, entrepreneurial opportunities, a knowledge economy, and a continuation of Shetland’s long-standing relationship with the energy industry are likely to follow.

To ensure the islands make the most of these opportunities, businesses ranging from leading energy generators to local engineering companies, organisations, and public authorities in Shetland are collaborating.

Lerwick Port Authority is one of the first to signal its intention to invest and plan for a future where offshore wind and the vessels and activity needed to support it are integral to its long-term planning.

In preparation, the port authority plans to dredge parts of the harbour and create ultra-deepwater capabilities and associated quaysides. In a conspicuous sign of the port’s capabilities and intent, it has already welcomed the world’s construction vessel, Pioneering Spirit, three times.

Pioneering Spirit returns to Lerwick Harbour, Shetland Islands.

Port authority chief executive Captain Calum Grains explains, “The arrivals of Pioneering Spirit shows how big are the vessels and the equipment we can handle in Lerwick.

“The facilities here are fantastic for supporting any proposed offshore projects. This includes oil and gas fields and decommissioning structures as older facilities come to the end of their life, as well as servicing wind farm developments.

“As part of the energy transition oil and gas are still needed so we still support them, along with new industries.

“Our ultra-deepwater expansion at Dales Voe will handle ships like Pioneering Spirit. Because there are very few harbours with facilities and quaysides like we have in Lerwick, that means we won’t just be supporting projects on our doorstep but can support projects much further afield.

“A lot of work we are preparing for now is with an eye on the future but it’s giving us a good standing in the energy industry.”

Significant investment

Offshore wind generation projects are among those which will use Lerwick Harbour facilities. Ocean Winds and Mainstream Renewable Power, working together in a joint 50:50 venture (Arven Wind) and ESB, an Irish semi-state organisation (Stoura Wind Farm), have seabed agreements with Crown Estate Scotland, paving the way for them to develop offshore windfarms in sites east of Shetland.

Captain Grains recognises the scale of the proposed wind farms, which will be multi-year installation projects, plus the operational phase, collectively bringing significant investment and employment to Shetland.

“It’s a huge opportunity, not just for Lerwick Harbour as a port, but the whole supply chain, and business community in the islands.

“Together, the dredging, quaysides and ultra-deepwater project proposed at Dales Voe Base are to support these kinds of proposed developments, especially floating offshore wind – with Lerwick not just playing a role, but being one of the main players.”

Aaron Priest is a Lerwick-based part of the Ocean Winds and Mainstream Renewable Power team, working to develop the proposed Arven offshore project, which will likely be delivered in phases over many years. Part of his role is understanding how the local infrastructure is gearing up to support the industry.

“We’re in the early planning stages and understanding the existing and future supply chain capacity in Shetland, like the port and other infrastructure in Shetland and how that will develop

“The port authority has plans to develop Dales Voe into an ultra-deepwater quay for marshalling, storage assembly works, and future operation support and maintenance. Multiple operation and maintenance facilities may be required if Arven is delivered in different phases.

“Arven already has an office at the port authority’s Albert Building, and we aim to maximise local business, employment, training and reskilling opportunities. The opportunities and the investment potential will be enormous.

“In Scotland, Ocean Winds has proven experience of developing wind farms in the Moray Firth, where it has created long-term local jobs and built two state-of-the-art operations and maintenance bases in Fraserburgh and Buckie."

It’s a huge opportunity, not just for Lerwick Harbour as a port, but the whole supply chain, and business community here in Lerwick.
Calum Grains

'Living laboratory'

In addition to operational support roles, Dr Desmond has ambitions for Stoura to become a 'living laboratory', through close collaboration with UHI Shetland under a recently signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).

"A central focus of this MOU will be seeking to replicate the enormous success of the Shetland Oil Terminal Environmental Advisory Group (SOTEAG) model in the context of a floating wind farm. I hope that through collaborating with the leading experts at UHI Shetland, we can effectively make Stoura a living laboratory which provides training opportunities and nurtures a local floating wind-based knowledge economy."

ESB is behind a further proposed offshore project east of Shetland, Stoura Wind Farm. Dr Cian Desmond is the project director and is confident that it can come with training and employment opportunities locally, linked to long-term careers. Indeed, a dozen locals have already been trained as marine mammal observers. This training was a collaboration between ESB and UHI Shetland, with opportunities for those trained to help the environmental monitoring efforts during the development process.

ESB operates elsewhere in Scotland at Eyemouth, with a total Scottish project pipeline of 2GW of onshore and 2GW of offshore wind, including the 450MW NNG project which they are developing was a joint venture with EDF.

This project includes an operations and maintenance base at Eyemouth which supports around 50 jobs. While Stoura is a very different project which will have a different operations and maintenance strategy, Dr Desmond says the Eyemouth facility is a good benchmark of what is required for a large offshore wind farm.

“That includes operation and maintenance roles such as inspecting and repairing the gear, turbines, foundations, and substations etc. At Eyemouth, we also have the wind farm control centre, training facilities and logistics hub. These are well-paid, long-term, sustainable jobs that add significant value to any economy.”

Skills and experience

Operating and maintaining these floating wind projects will require the right blend of skills and experience in Shetland.

“The weather and sea conditions mean there can be narrow operational windows," says Dr Desmond, "so ideally, the maintenance and engineering expertise will be based locally so that we can make maximum use of these windows when they become available. The ambition will also be to have the wind farm control centre, data analytics, and administration based in Shetland. These roles would be in addition to logistics support, warehousing and marine-based opportunities.”

He describes his ambition for Stoura to become a ‘living laboratory’.

“I’m also excited about the research jobs and the opportunity to build a knowledge economy in Shetland, with expertise that will be valuable in other locations.

“Floating wind is going to be huge. It is estimated that 80% of the global offshore wind recourse will require floating foundations. By working with UHI Shetland, we hope to identify training and research opportunities which will support the development of a local floating wind knowledge economy."

Community impact

Of course, the installation of any energy infrastructure will bring about considerable impact and change in the community. The projects will be upwards of 30km – 40 km from shore, but onshore infrastructure will have a visual impact and developments on this scale will affect the Shetland community and existing businesses. Shetland's essential fishing industry, has higlighted concerns about the loss of important fishing grounds.

Both Arven and ESB are keen to emphasise their projects are in the early planning stages, working on a timescale that predicts their wind farms start generating in the mid-to-late-2030s. Central to the preparatory work is a recognition of the critical importance of the fishing industry to Shetland. Close discussions with the fishing industry are well under way, with the NE1 Fisheries Forum created to allow dialogue throughout. (NE1 is Crown Estate Scotland’s name for the block of seabed where the farms would be installed).

The Fisheries Forum is made up of all local and national industry bodies including the Shetland Fishermen’s Association, Scottish Fishermen’s Federation, Scottish Pelagic Fishermen’s Association, and the Shetland Shellfish Management Organisation.

Dr Desmond said an “evidence-based” approach would inform the process to ensure both industries can co-exist.

Concerns are not restricted to the fishing industry. There are growing calls from local politicians demanding that Shetland gets a “fair deal”, in recognition of hosting nationally significant infrastructure and generation capability on the islands’ doorstep.

At an event marking the opening of the Viking wind farm, Shetland Islands Council leader Emma Macdonald spoke of the need to change the rules, “so that the social and economic benefits to the host communities match the social and economic costs imposed on those host communities.”

The same winds that so effectively power turbines in Shetland also cool the climate and make homes harder – and more expensive – to heat. Hence the increasing demands for a “Shetland tariff” and improvements to household insulation.

As Ms Macdonald says, “We must also learn lessons and ensure that future developments, particularly those taking place offshore, are structured in a way that is fair for our community.”

Exactly how that looks is not yet known. Still, there is a strong belief that a deal can be reached to ensure the future energy industry provides clear and lasting benefits to the Shetland community like the Sullom Voe oil agreements did five decades earlier.