The Viking Energy wind farm, a 103-turbine onshore wind farm under construction on the Shetland Islands, has received over £2 million in payments to remain idle, according to new figures.

The Renewable Energy Foundation (REF) released data this week on ‘constraint payments’, showing that wind farm operators across the UK—mostly in Scotland—have been awarded over £200m this year alone.

Despite not being fully operational yet, the Viking Energy wind farm has received £2,137,687 since August 2, as per REF.

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These payments are nearly as much as the total community benefits Viking will distribute for the entire year.

The payments are made by the Electricity System Operator (ESO) to wind farm developers during periods when the energy generated exceeds the grid's capacity to transfer it to where it’s needed, mainly in England. However, it’s ultimately consumers who bear the cost.

REF calculated that between August 17 and 26, 78% of Viking’s generating capacity was discarded.

For example, on Saturday, August 25, SSE estimated the wind farm could generate 6,298MWh throughout the day, but they were paid not to generate 6,297MWh—almost the entire amount.

The Viking project has been highly controversial since its inception, with many arguing it has led to the ‘industrialisation’ of the landscape and the destruction of valuable peatland.

SSE and renewable energy proponents have previously emphasised the wind farm’s role in supporting the energy transition, claiming it provides enough green energy to power around 500,000 homes.

The fact that most of its generating capacity has been wasted so far is unlikely to improve public perception of the project.

John Constable REF director stated: “The generosity of constraint payments has created a perverse incentive to build in areas where there is low demand and weak grid infrastructure. Due to the physically chaotic nature of wind flows, all wind farms are very large and have a highly significant detrimental effect on the often wild land areas on which they are built.

“In return for this impact, the wind farm generates a relatively small quantity of electricity and delivers it at random in relation to market demand.

“This does not seem like a good deal either financially for the consumer, who must pay for the very high total system costs of wind power, or environmentally.”

The ESO and SSE are working to enhance the infrastructure, creating additional capacity to transmit wind power to where it’s needed.

Projects like the £3.4b Eastern Green Link 2 (EGL2) will involve cables connecting Aberdeenshire to North Yorkshire to transport renewable energy from Scotland to England.

However, Dr. Constable noted that such grid expansion is ‘very expensive and is also paid for by the consumer’.

The ESO stated it is exploring a ‘range of options to reduce network constraints’.

In a statement SSE said: “Which assets are constrained is a decision for the independent electricity system operator, not individual companies.

“Ultimately, the solution to this issue is to invest in more electricity grid infrastructure so that clean energy is transported to the homes and businesses that need it.

“At SSE, we are investing £20bn by 2030 in transmission infrastructure alone to help unlock Scotland’s renewable potential and would support reform of planning and consents to speed up delivery this essential investment.”