The wind farms include the Mainstream Renewable’s 450MW Neart na Gaoithe (NnG) offshore wind farm in the Outer Forth Estuary in the North Sea as well as Repsol and EDP’s 1GW Inch Cape offshore wind farm in the Outer Firth of Tay.
The other facilities include 525MW Seagreen Alpha and 525MW Seagreen Bravo wind farms developed by SSE Renewables and Fluor.
The four wind farms will have a combined electricity generating capacity of up to 2.284GW and will produce carbon savings of approximately 135 million tons over their operational life.
Scottish Energy Minister Fergus Ewing said: "These wind farms alone could generate a combined gross value added of between £314 million and £1.2 billion in Scotland over their lifetime and generate between 2,567 and 13,612 jobs within Scotland during the construction period.
"Granting consent for these developments will enable them to bid for an offshore wind contract for difference (CfD) under the UK Government’s Electricity Market Reform process.
By 2020, the Scottish government intends to shift to a low carbon society, by generating 100% of electricity from renewable sources.
Ewing added: "The budget for offshore wind (and other less established technologies) in the first of these rounds scheduled for autumn is £235 million, thought to be enough to support around 800 MW of offshore wind in UK waters.
"The level of support available to the offshore renewables sector sits in stark contrast to the unprecedented financial backing being offered to new nuclear plants, with a possible £35 billion subsidy for the new Hinkley Point C station alone in addition to a £10 billion loan guarantee."
Image: The Scottish government approves development for 2.284GW of offshore wind farms. Photo: courtesy of Scottish Renewables.
