Black-Start Capability - A Global first for ScottishPower Renewables

With just one year to go until the eyes of the world are on Glasgow for the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), ScottishPower Renewables (SPR) has achieved what is believed to be a global first – using energy from a 69MW of onshore wind turbines to re-energise part of the power grid.

The successful project, at Dersalloch windfarm in South Ayrshire, proves wind power can restore a ‘blacked-out’ section of the transmission network. ‘Black Start’ restoration –  the name given to the procedure used to restore power in the event of a total or partial shutdown of the electricity transmission system – is often reliant on traditional fossil fuels like coal and gas. So, delivering Black Start using renewables is not just an extraordinary achievement, but a pioneering world first.