What is it?

Onshore wind energy is the power that’s generated by wind turbines located on land and driven by the natural movement of the air.  You’ll often see onshore wind farms in rural areas, as they’re usually constructed in less-populated areas where buildings and obstacles don’t interrupt the air.  The first known wind turbine used to produce electricity was developed in Scotland in 1887, and over 100 years later, the UK opened its first commercial windfarm in 1991. This was heralded as a new era of energy production.

How does it work?

The process of converting kinetic into electrical energy is the same as the process in offshore wind.  The major differences occur during the planning and construction phases of an onshore wind farm, which are significantly cheaper and quicker to build.

What are the advantages of onshore wind?

• Speed of Installation and maintenance – Depending on the scale, onshore wind farms can be constructed in months and are relatively easy and cheap to maintain.

• Cost-effective – As previously mentioned, offshore wind is becoming more cost-effective, but onshore is still significantly cheaper and remains one of the least expensive forms of energy.

• Environmental impact – The construction of onshore wind farms is less intensive and requires fewer resources in comparison to offshore wind.  The land below the turbines can still be farmed and the impact of the turbines on the local habitat is easier to monitor.

• Scale – Onshore wind is scalable, and it is possible to purchase a single wind turbine that can be used to generate power for a single property or place of work.  This makes it significantly more flexible than other forms of renewable energy.

What are the disadvantages of onshore wind?

• Changing wind speeds – Wind speed is less consistent and changes direction more often whilst travelling over land.  The wind speed in general is lower due to increased friction with the ground.

• Lower power generation – Onshore turbines tend to produce less power than their offshore equivalents due to restrictions on blade size which can limit the ‘tip height’ of the turbine.  In the UK, the average onshore wind turbine produces 2.5 to 3 megawatts (MW), in comparison to the offshore average of 3.6 MW.

• Effects on the local population – It is common for people to complain about the visual and noise impact of onshore wind farms.  Due to their requirement to be built away from large urban settlements, they are often constructed in some of the most picturesque areas of our landscape.

Current energy production?

In Q1 of 2022, onshore wind was the second largest producer of renewable energy in the UK, accounting for 13.9% of the total electrical energy produced.   Onshore wind was the initial renewable energy source of choice, only being overtaken by offshore wind in 2020 in terms of total power output.

Where are onshore wind farms located?

The illustration was created in 2010, so there has been an increase in both onshore and offshore wind locations since its production.  However, it is useful as it shows the key distribution of onshore wind farms and how they tend to be positioned in the mountainous areas of the UK, particularly in Scotland.  This has been recognised by the Scottish Government and they have a pipeline of new projects in the initial planning phase of development.

UK Wind Farm Location and Capacities Map (2010) (Credit: Steve Sawyer, GWEC)

Key Projects in the industry

• Clyde Wind Farm - https://www.sserenewables.com/onshore-wind/great-britain/clyde/

• Whitelle Wind Farm - https://www.whiteleewindfarm.co.uk/

• Kigallioch Wind Farm - https://www.scottishpowerrenewables.com/pages/kilgallioch.aspx

• Pen-y-cymoedd - https://group.vattenfall.com/uk/what-we-do/our-projects/pen-y-cymoedd

• Stronelairg - https://www.sserenewables.com/onshore-wind/great-britain/stronelairg/

Future projects and development of onshore wind

Repowering has become a crucial goal for several of the older wind farms in the UK.  This involves the replacement of old wind turbines with new, highly efficient models that are both more powerful and cheaper to maintain than their old counterparts.  The new turbines have been proven to double the total generating capacity of a wind farm, and triple the electricity output as they can produce more power per unit of capacity. These targets can be achieved whilst requiring fewer turbines, 27% on average.  It is expected that more than 20GW of onshore wind farms in the UK will be repowered over the next 10 years.

As well as repowering, Renewable UK conducted research that showed that the total capacity of onshore wind could double to 30GW by 2030.  The report was based on the total number of operational wind farms, under construction, consented, submitted into the planning system, or being developed for submission into planning.  It is expected that 30GW could power 19.5 million UK homes a year.  A link to the report:  https://www.renewableuk.com/news/535255/UKs-total-onshore-wind-project-pipeline-reaches-up-to-30-gigawatts-by-2030.htm