Nadara confirmed to Cowie, north of Stonehaven, as the planned landing point for the electrical infrastructure of Bellrock floating wind farm, which projects a capacity of 1.8 GW off the coast of Scotland.
Nadara is making progress with the electrical connection of Bellrock
The company continues to develop the Bellrock project and has identified one of the key locations for its marine transmission system. Cowie, in Aberdeenshire, was selected following a series of environmental and engineering studies. The process also included consultations with local communities held in November 2025 and March 2026.
Defining the grounding point allows progress to be made in the design of the electrical connection while the wind farm authorization process continues in parallel.
Cowie will be the planned landing point
As part of this process, Nadara submitted to the Marine Directorate a scoping report and an initial assessment in accordance with the Habitats Regulations for offshore transmission infrastructure.
The scoping report seeks to define which aspects should be included later in the Environmental Impact Assessment corresponding to the Bellrock marine transmission area.
The HRA assessment will provide information on the potential impacts of the infrastructure on European areas considered important for nature conservation. The company plans to submit the formal application for the Offshore Transmission Development Area before the end of 2027.
Bellrock continues its authorization process
While studies related to the electrical transmission are progressing, the request for consent for the main area of the wind farm it continues under evaluation.
Nadara submitted this application in April 2026, so the development of the generation area and the design of the transmission infrastructure are progressing in parallel.
Brian McGrellis, Bellrock’s Consents and Land Officer, noted that the comments submitted by stakeholders to the Marine Directorate will help Scottish ministers develop a more detailed scoping opinion.
This document will serve as a reference to define the aspects that should be analyzed during the following phases of environmental assessment.
Aker Solutions participates in electrical studies
The development of the electrical infrastructure also involves the participation of Aker Solutions, Nadara commissioned the company to conduct various studies for Bellrock through its consulting division Entr and its subsidiary Unitech Power Systems.
The work involves the design and analysis of the electrical infrastructure needed for a project that includes approximately 1.8 GW of installed capacity.
Bellrock will be located about 120 kilometers off the coast of Aberdeenshire and could incorporate up to 120 floating wind turbines according to the currently planned schedule, offshore construction would begin in the early 2030s.
The evolution of environmental permits and the definition of the transmission infrastructure will be crucial for Bellrock to move towards its next stages of development and strengthen its role within Scotland’s future floating wind capacity.
Source: Offshore Wind
Photo: Shutterstock
