Highland Communities Eligible for 2nd Round of Beatrice Funds

SSE has invited local Highland communities to apply for the second round of the Beatrice partnership fund.

The fund, associated with the 588MW Beatrice offshore wind farm currently under construction in the Moray Firth, Scotland, was launched in December 2016 and is part of a wider package of benefits being offered by Beatrice Offshore Windfarm Limited (BOWL), the joint venture partnership behind the wind farm.

The Beatrice fund is worth a total of GBP 6 million, split between Highland (GBP 4m) and Moray (GBP 2m). These will be split equally between a partnership fund in each area and a local fund.

The partnership fund for Highland covers the communities on the east coast of Caithness and Sutherland. In Moray, it will include all coastal communities and the four local communities, namely Buckie and District, Strathisla, Lennox and Keith.

Applications for the second round of the Highland element of the partnership fund should be sent by 25 August 2017.

The criteria for the partnership fund is:

• Creating opportunities
  Create or enhance opportunities for education and employment through activities focused on improving an individual’s chances of entering the workplace or further professional development;
• Empowering communities
  Empower fragile communities to become more resilient and to protect their vulnerable residents through measures which demonstrate long term social, environmental or economic improvements; and
• Sustainable places
  Stimulate meaningful regeneration through actions which improve or enhance local infrastructure, landscape, biodiversity, or heritage to make a lasting difference to the places we live, work and visit.

The 84-turbine Beatrice offshore wind farm is due to be operational by 2019, with onshore and offshore construction work currently underway.