Hurricane-Force Gusts Prompt Record Pay to U.K. Wind Farms
- National Grid paid highest amount ever to energy suppliers
- Strong winds, sun and low demand forced wind farms to curtail
Wind turbines on the Scottish Borders.
Photographer: Mike Wilkinson/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Scottish wind farms received a record 5.5 million pounds ($7.2 million) to shut down this month after hurricane-force gusts produced more electricity than could be consumed.
Unusually strong summer winds blowing as high as 115 miles (185 kilometers) an hour swept the Scottish Highlands on Aug. 7, prompting National Grid Plc to ask energy generators to curtail production, according to the London-based company’s commercial-operations manager Claire Spedding. The weather resulted in the U.K. grid operator awarding a record 7.3 million pounds in total payments across a range of technologies.