{"id":367328,"date":"2025-02-23T16:25:49","date_gmt":"2025-02-23T15:25:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=367328"},"modified":"2025-02-23T16:25:50","modified_gmt":"2025-02-23T15:25:50","slug":"major-wind-farm-was-paid-65m-to-cut-power-output-by-three-quarters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=367328","title":{"rendered":"Major wind farm was paid \u00a365m to cut power output by three quarters"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Britain\u2019s \u2018staggeringly inefficient\u2019 grid is pushing up bills, warns energy boss.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of Britain\u2019s biggest wind farms was handed \u00a365m to slash its output by nearly three quarters last year, amid warnings that the country\u2019s \u201cstaggeringly inefficient\u201d power grid is pushing up household bills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Seagreen offshore wind farm in the\u00a0North Sea<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 the largest of its kind in Scotland \u2013 had its output curtailed for 71pc of the time it was due to operate in 2024, grid data show. The Telegraph<\/a> has the story.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This meant that of 4.7 terawatt hours of power its turbines generated, 3.3 terawatt hours were effectively discarded \u2013 with owner SSE paid by grid operators each time this happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SSE also owns the Viking wind farm in the Shetlands, which had 57pc of its output curtailed last year at a cost of \u00a310m. It was only switched on in August.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The two sites have been paid another \u00a31.5m so far this year for cutting output.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grid operators pay wind farms to switch off when they are generating but there is not enough network capacity to transport their power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But these curtailment payments ultimately go on to bills, in the form of network charges, and are paid by millions of households and businesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last year, separate analysis by the Renewable Energy Foundation charity found that wind farms were paid almost \u00a3400m to turn off their turbines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Friday, SSE said grid upgrades were coming that would result in \u201cmore and more of this power flowing into the economy, powering homes and businesses for decades to come\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A spokesman said: \u201cSeagreen and Viking wind farms<\/a> are incredible assets that give Britain the ability to harness huge volumes of its own clean, homegrown energy that can drive economic growth while reducing reliance on volatile imports.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It came as the Government on Friday announced a slew of changes designed to attract more wind farm investment in the UK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The proposals will make it easier for developers to secure contracts for difference (CfDs), the main mechanism used to support renewable energy schemes, and will extend their duration beyond the current 15 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the figures will fuel a row that is raging in the energy industry over controversial proposals to introduce regional electricity pricing in the UK, replacing the current national price system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Greg Jackson<\/a>, the chief executive of Octopus Energy, compared the existing arrangement to \u201cevery region being forced to charge London house prices\u201d and warned it would add \u00a35bn to bills by the end of this decade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Writing for The Telegraph<\/a>, he said: \u201cBritain suffers from a staggeringly inefficient market, reminiscent of the wine lakes and butter mountains of the old European Common Agricultural Policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read the full story here<\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of Britain\u2019s biggest wind farms was handed \u00a365m to slash its output by nearly three quarters last year, amid warnings that the country\u2019s \u201cstaggeringly inefficient\u201d power grid is pushing up household bills.
\nThe Seagreen offshore wind farm in the\u00a0North Sea\u00a0\u2013 the largest of its kind in Scotland \u2013 had its output curtailed for 71pc of the time it was due to operate in 2024, grid data show.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":367331,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-367328","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-uncategorized","9":"fallback-thumbnail"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/0nicholas-doherty-pONBhDyOFoM-unsplash-scaled-e1661335268967.webp?fit=2560%2C1440&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-1xyE","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":368521,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=368521","url_meta":{"origin":367328,"position":0},"title":"Britain Paying \u00a3180,000 an Hour to Switch Off Wind Farms","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"04\/03\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Britain is paying almost \u00a3180,000 an hour to switch off wind farms because there is\u00a0nowhere for the excess power to go.","rel":"","context":"In \"energy bills\"","block_context":{"text":"energy bills","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=energy-bills"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/0Screenshot-2025-02-11-000504.jpeg?fit=1200%2C624&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/0Screenshot-2025-02-11-000504.jpeg?fit=1200%2C624&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/0Screenshot-2025-02-11-000504.jpeg?fit=1200%2C624&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/0Screenshot-2025-02-11-000504.jpeg?fit=1200%2C624&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/0Screenshot-2025-02-11-000504.jpeg?fit=1200%2C624&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":420666,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=420666","url_meta":{"origin":367328,"position":1},"title":"Scotland\u2019s biggest offshore wind farm wasting three quarters of energy","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"09\/01\/2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Scotland's largest operational offshore wind farm, the Seagreen project (1.075 GW capacity, 114 turbines, operated by SSE Renewables and TotalEnergies), reportedly wasted around 77% of its generated electricity in 2025 due to grid constraints. This means operators were paid to curtail (switch off) turbines when the UK grid- particularly transmission\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Energy\"","block_context":{"text":"Energy","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=energy"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/0AQNjPMYQDRDCTYGHJUDP63CXSaueXNsqig9GY_vBzOMtRcVCt7PSwfGZnYC0sr0owpFiEbNq07MQoWiD3h5IgEvM5wdDQH6t8w2mfPsbKk9Wqs7DTSCToymGLVKme_P2-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C658&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/0AQNjPMYQDRDCTYGHJUDP63CXSaueXNsqig9GY_vBzOMtRcVCt7PSwfGZnYC0sr0owpFiEbNq07MQoWiD3h5IgEvM5wdDQH6t8w2mfPsbKk9Wqs7DTSCToymGLVKme_P2-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C658&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/0AQNjPMYQDRDCTYGHJUDP63CXSaueXNsqig9GY_vBzOMtRcVCt7PSwfGZnYC0sr0owpFiEbNq07MQoWiD3h5IgEvM5wdDQH6t8w2mfPsbKk9Wqs7DTSCToymGLVKme_P2-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C658&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/0AQNjPMYQDRDCTYGHJUDP63CXSaueXNsqig9GY_vBzOMtRcVCt7PSwfGZnYC0sr0owpFiEbNq07MQoWiD3h5IgEvM5wdDQH6t8w2mfPsbKk9Wqs7DTSCToymGLVKme_P2-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C658&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/0AQNjPMYQDRDCTYGHJUDP63CXSaueXNsqig9GY_vBzOMtRcVCt7PSwfGZnYC0sr0owpFiEbNq07MQoWiD3h5IgEvM5wdDQH6t8w2mfPsbKk9Wqs7DTSCToymGLVKme_P2-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C658&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":354593,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=354593","url_meta":{"origin":367328,"position":2},"title":"System Balancing Costs","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"16\/12\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"David Rose had a good article on wind constraint payments the other day on UnHerd","rel":"","context":"In \"100% clean power\"","block_context":{"text":"100% clean power","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=100-clean-power"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/0182bf52e27f8f25d283b019fd458f84e.jpeg?fit=1200%2C750&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/0182bf52e27f8f25d283b019fd458f84e.jpeg?fit=1200%2C750&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/0182bf52e27f8f25d283b019fd458f84e.jpeg?fit=1200%2C750&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/0182bf52e27f8f25d283b019fd458f84e.jpeg?fit=1200%2C750&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/0182bf52e27f8f25d283b019fd458f84e.jpeg?fit=1200%2C750&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":360491,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=360491","url_meta":{"origin":367328,"position":3},"title":"The UK pays wind turbines for failure \u2014 so the market wants to install more failures","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"04\/01\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Ponder for a moment how intrinsically unsuitable, maladapted, and worthless wind turbines are to a grid. Their failure is so comprehensive, multifaceted and inevitable, an entirely new and bizarre market was invented to reward their failures. Even when they generate electricity, if the time is wrong, the demand is low,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Net Zero Watch\"","block_context":{"text":"Net Zero Watch","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=net-zero-watch"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/zScreenshot-2023-11-03-111148-1024x611-1.webp?fit=1024%2C611&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/zScreenshot-2023-11-03-111148-1024x611-1.webp?fit=1024%2C611&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/zScreenshot-2023-11-03-111148-1024x611-1.webp?fit=1024%2C611&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/zScreenshot-2023-11-03-111148-1024x611-1.webp?fit=1024%2C611&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 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