SSE Picks Montrose Port for 1.4 GW Berwick Bank B Offshore Wind Base in Scotland, UK

SSE has already entrusted one major offshore wind farm to Montrose Port, and it is now doubling down.

From Seagreen Success to Berwick Bank B: A Partnership Deepens

The energy company has named the Angus harbour as its preferred operations and maintenance base for Berwick Bank B, a 1.4GW project that will sustain 100 full-time positions on site for an operational lifespan exceeding 35 years. The choice extends a working relationship between the two organisations that stretches back years, rooted in Montrose's existing role as the servicing point for the Seagreen Offshore Wind Farm.

Tom Hutchison, Chief Executive of Montrose Port Authority, characterised the bond with SSE as one founded on trust, delivery and years of collaboration, suggesting that the selection for Berwick Bank B demonstrates just how far that alliance has progressed. The announcement was unveiled at an event held at the port itself, with First Minister John Swinney among those present.

What the New Base Will Look Like

The operational hub will occupy South Harbour at Montrose Port, where Montrose Port Authority's current offices are to be repurposed for the facility. Redevelopment of those offices is expected to sustain roughly 30 construction jobs alongside the permanent positions. Once operational, the 100 full-time employees, technicians and engineers among them, will manage the day-to-day running of the wind farm's offshore assets.

The roles are projected to endure across the project's anticipated lifetime of more than three and a half decades, providing long-term skilled employment for Montrose and the wider Angus region. There is also room for that workforce to expand. Should the Berwick Bank A and C phases win backing through future Contracts for Difference auctions and subsequently reach Final Investment Decisions, the total of full-time operational positions at Montrose associated with the Berwick Bank programme could climb to nearly 300.

Where Berwick Bank B Sits in the Pipeline

Berwick Bank B occupies the outer Firth of Forth, roughly 38 kilometres from Scotland's eastern coastline. It constitutes one element of SSE's broader 4.1GW Berwick Bank Wind Farm scheme, which, if delivered at full scale, would rank as the largest single offshore wind farm on the planet, generating sufficient electricity to supply about 6.5 million UK homes each year and covering over 6% of current national electricity demand.

SSE frames the scheme as nationally significant for its capacity to bolster UK energy security while insulating the country from turbulent international energy markets. A pivotal step came in January, when SSE won a 20-year contract covering 1.4GW of Berwick Bank B capacity in Allocation Round 7 of the UK Government's Contracts for Difference scheme, the mechanism that grants long-term revenue certainty to generation projects.

The company is now advancing the project toward a Final Investment Decision anticipated next year.

Westminster Frames the Decision as Proof of Clean Power Policy

Michael Shanks, the UK Government's Energy Minister, welcomed the decision, describing it as a key milestone for Berwick Bank. He pointed to SSE's plans for Montrose Port as evidence of what the Government's pursuit of clean power can mean for Scotland, including some 100 skilled jobs that could persist for decades, capital invested in ports, and openings for businesses in the area.

He noted that Berwick Bank, constructed in full, would be the largest single offshore wind farm in the world.

Holyrood Sees a Hub Taking Shape

First Minister John Swinney used the occasion to underline the strategic value of the choice for Scotland's renewable energy sector. He argued that SSE picking Montrose reinforces the nation's offshore wind supply chain while generating employment and investment in skills, infrastructure and surrounding communities. Scottish ports, he said, act as critical enablers of the country's offshore wind ambitions and serve as key economic assets for the areas around them.

Swinney further observed that Montrose is on course to become one of the world's largest offshore wind operations and maintenance hubs, servicing not only Berwick Bank but also the Seagreen and Inch Cape wind farms. At the event itself, he welcomed SSE's ongoing commitment to delivering highly skilled offshore wind jobs through its Scottish renewable energy investments.

SSE Points to Expertise Meeting Investment

For SSE, the announcement was presented as a vindication of the industry Scotland has assembled. Stuart Hood, Director of Offshore Wind Operations at SSE Renewables, said the country has developed a world-class offshore wind sector and that the decision illustrates the economic rewards available when that know-how is paired with long-term investment.

He cited the calibre of the port, its workforce and the local supply chain as reasons Montrose was selected as the preferred base for Berwick Bank B, alongside the 100 new positions it brings. Hood also stressed the depth of the company's ties with Montrose, developed over many years, and said the latest long-term commitment will support the port's ongoing growth as a leading offshore wind hub, which he described as clear evidence of the clean energy transition's potential to generate skilled employment and economic opportunity for communities across the country.