Forss Wind Farm

Forss Wind Farm occupies the site of a former US Navy communications base on the north coast of Caithness, 2½ miles (4 km) northeast of Dounreay. This location gives access to the electricity grid connectivity associated with the former nuclear power station. The communications base was decommissioned in 1992 and the network of the masts and antennae, which once covered the northern slopes of the Hill of Lybster, were dismantled and their ground anchor points and access tracks proved ideal in supporting a wind farm.

The wind farm was developed in two phases; two Bonus 1.16 MW turbines were installed on steel towers in 2003, with a further four Siemens 1.3 MW turbines added in 2007, giving a total generating capacity of 7.5 MW. The wind turbines have a tower height of 47m (154 feet) which, with a blade diameter of 62m (203 feet), gives a total height of 78m (256 feet).

Forss Wind Farm is owned by the Abbey Group of Cambridgeshire and operated by Glasgow-based Renewable Energy Systems Ltd. (RES).

The former communications control buildings now comprise Forss Business and Technology Park, while the Forss Energy Park lies amongst the turbines, providing facilities for renewable energy research and a green-powered computer data centre for secure data storage.


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