Have your say on plans to expand offshore wind capacity in Scotland
Proposals from the Scottish Government would see the country's offshore wind capacity increase to up to 40 gigawatts (GW) by 2040 – enough to power the equivalent of around 45 million homes a year.
Scotland's current offshore wind capacity ambition is between 8 and 11 GW by 2030 and the Scottish Government says the new figure seeks to reaffirm its commitment to growing the sector.
Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action and Energy Gillian Martin announced the opening of the consultation at the Global Offshore Wind Forum in London on Wednesday.
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Martin said: 'Scotland's offshore wind sector is already creating significant opportunities, delivering jobs and attracting major investment across the country.
'As a result we need to update our ambition for offshore wind to reflect and firmly underline our commitment to economic growth and investment offered by the sector.
'I would urge everyone with an interest in offshore wind to have a say in the consultation.'
As well as supporting national climate targets, the increase being consulted upon reflects significant private sector interest in the ScotWind and the Innovation and Targeted Oil and Gas (INTOG) seabed leasing rounds, the Government said.
Ministers said the success of these leasing rounds symbolises "the enormous economic potential of offshore wind" and puts Scotland "at the forefront of development globally".
The consultation document says: "We want to see the maximum possible deployment of the Scottish offshore wind project pipeline, whilst balancing the impact on the marine environment and other marine users.
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"Now is the right time to highlight key achievements and developments since 2020, and to set out an updated ambition for Scotland alongside our plans to ensure that the benefits of offshore wind will be felt for generations to come."
The consultation will run until August 13.
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