Natural Power Supports Fred.Olsen Renewables’ Windy Standard III Get Off the Ground

As Fred. Olsen Renewables announces the commencement of construction at Windy Standard III (“WS3”)in Dumfries & Galloway, leading renewable energy consultancy and service provider Natural Power has completed delivery of its feasibility work on this third phase of the landmark project’s development.

Peter Denholm, Director of Analytics at Natural Power said: “We’re proud to have supported Fred.Olsen Renewables reach this stage. The site itself has many complex features which makes it an interesting project from a technical perspective and enables us to make best use of our proprietary technology and resources to gain a deep understanding of the site conditions and energy generation potential. 

We look forward to seeing the progress and delivery of Windy Standard III which not only has the potential to generate 87.6MW of power but will also bring a significant community benefit fund to the local area.” 

Natural Power has provided a comprehensive range of services to Fred.Olsen Renewables in support of the WS3 project. This included supporting with early site design and developing a thorough technical understanding of the complex wind conditions that result from the terrain as well as various forestry management scenarios. Additionally, Natural Power supported the anemometry campaign design (including remote sensing devices); indicative EYA to support investigations of forest felling plans as well as turbine configuration options; finance grade EYA to support internal investment decisions; as well as ad-hoc wind technical support. 

Helen Thrasher, Head of Technical at Fred Olsen Renewables, said: “The input from Natural Power on this project has been invaluable at every step of the way. We value the guidance and support provided and trust Natural Power to help us make important technical decisions on increasingly complex projects."

Windy Standard was Scotland’s first consented wind farm which has now been operational for more than 25 years. In March 2021, Fred. Olsen Renewables received approval from Scottish Ministers to develop Windy Standard III, a 20-turbine extension to Windy Standard 1 and Windy Standard 2. These three projects combined will deliver enough electricity to power the equivalent of 131,286 homes annually and deliver more than £15m in community benefit funding.

Natural Power has been involved with the site since its inception and now also provides service and maintenance services to Windy Standard 1 and 2. 

Fred Olsen Renewables | https://fredolsenrenewables.com/

Natural Power | www.naturalpower.com