The Inch Cape Offshore Wind Farm has achieved a significant infrastructure milestone with the successful installation of the first of its two 85-kilometre offshore export cables off the east coast of Scotland.

The 220 kV, three-phase cable will serve as the crucial link to transmit power from the 1.1 gigawatt (GW) wind farm to the project's new onshore substation, which is currently under construction at Cockenzie, East Lothian.

The cable, which is manufactured by Orient Cable and is among the largest AC export cables globally, was installed in three 28-kilometre sections by Enshore Subsea, utilising the CMOS Installer cable lay vessel. The installation required two offshore joints, completed using the North Sea Giant, and the cable will shortly be buried in the seabed.

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John Hill, Inch Cape Project Director, welcomed the completion of the complex offshore scope. "This is the critical link between the offshore and onshore substations, with great work by the Inch Cape team and our supply partners," he said. "This achievement is testament to the momentum Inch Cape has gathered since early summer, and to the team's focus on the successful delivery of key milestones."

Inch Cape is now well into its offshore construction phase, with both the offshore substation platform and the first export cable installed, and the first of its XXL monopiles delivered to the Port of Leith.

The project is on track for first power in late-2026 and full commercial operations in 2027. Once complete, the wind farm, owned in a 50/50 joint venture by ESB and Red Rock Renewables, will generate almost 5 terawatt hours (TWh) of energy each year, enough to power half of the homes in Scotland.

The second 85km export cable will also be installed by Enshore Subsea in three 28km sections during a later campaign in 2026. Next year will also see the installation of the project's foundation structures and the first of 72 Vestas 15MW turbines.