Robin Rigg OFTO
OperationalOffshore Grid174 MW132 kV15 km2010
Basic information
9 fieldsAlso Known As
TC Robin Rigg OFTO Ltd · Robin Rigg East and West OFTO · Robin Rigg OFTO TR1
Status
operational
Capacity
174 MW
Project Company
Type
offshore grid
Transmission Model
Developer Build & Transfer
Expected Life
20 years
Website
Supply Chain (8)
Project Timeline (20)
31 Mar 2025Operations Other
By the end of the financial year to 31 March 2025, TC Robin Rigg OFTO Limited had continued operating the Robin Rigg transmission assets in accordance with its licence, achieving approximately 99.98% availability and consistently outperforming the availability ratio targets set out in its transmission licence from the start of operations to that date.
2019Operations Other
In 2019, the Robin Rigg OFTO transmission asset brought into operation an ISO 14001-certified Environmental Management System, under which the company monitors energy usage and waste and records quantities of fluorinated gases such as SF6 held within equipment, with any SF6 leaks detected by SCADA systems.
3 Mar 2011Regulatory Other
On 3 March 2011, Ofgem published its Cost Assessment Report for the Robin Rigg transmission assets, concluding that the economic and efficient costs of developing and constructing the assets were £65,516,330; this assessed transfer value, derived from earlier initial and indicative values of £58.7 million and £57.3 million, formed the basis for the consideration paid by TC Robin Rigg OFTO Limited and was incorporated into the project’s regulated tender revenue stream.
2 Mar 2011Stake Transaction
Ofgem granted TC Robin Rigg OFTO Limited (a Transmission Capital Partners SPV) the first-ever UK offshore transmission licence on 2 March 2011 for the 174 MW Robin Rigg offshore transmission assets. The transfer value was GBP 65.5 million. Assets transferred from E.ON (now RWE) under Ofgem's OFTO Tender Round 1.
Transmission Capital acquired from E.ON (100%)
2 Mar 2011Fid Financial Close
On 2 March 2011, TC Robin Rigg OFTO Limited reached financial close and completed the purchase of the Robin Rigg offshore transmission assets, including the undersea export cables and certain onshore transmission cables and equipment, for an assessed transfer value of about £65.5 million, financed by shareholder and external debt arranged by its parent company to fund acquisition and ongoing operation and maintenance.
2 Mar 2011Revenue Secured
On 2 March 2011, Ofgem granted an offshore transmission licence to TC Robin Rigg OFTO Limited, establishing a 20‑year availability‑based, index‑linked revenue regime running to March 2031 for the Robin Rigg transmission assets. Under this regime the consortium’s winning bid secures a regulated revenue stream of approximately £6.5 million per year (indexed to UK RPI), with payments guaranteed by National Grid Electricity Transmission in its role as system operator and with no exposure to wind farm output.
5 Aug 2010Revenue Secured
On 5 August 2010, Transmission Capital Partners was declared preferred bidder for the Robin Rigg offshore transmission licence, securing conditional rights to own and operate the Robin Rigg OFTO transmission assets and receive the associated regulated, availability-based revenue stream, and it established TC Robin Rigg OFTO Ltd as the special purpose company to acquire the assets.
Apr 2010Commercial Operations Full Power
Robin Rigg East and West, the first commercial offshore wind farms in Scottish waters, began full generation in April 2010. The 174 MW project's offshore transmission assets in the Solway Firth reached full operational status, with RWE confirming full generation from all 60 Vestas V90-3MW turbines.
Jan 2010Onss Commissioned
The Robin Rigg East transmission assets, including the export cables and shared onshore substation that connect the Robin Rigg East and West wind farms (combined capacity 180MW) in the Solway Firth to the 132kV distribution network at Seaton in Cumbria, were commissioned in January 2010, completing commissioning of the Robin Rigg transmission link ahead of its later transfer to the OFTO owner.
2009Cable Installation Start
Export cable installation for Robin Rigg commenced in 2009. Prysmian supplied two 132 kV export cables, each approximately 12.5 km long, connecting the offshore substation in the Solway Firth to the onshore substation at Seaton in Cumbria. Cable jointing was completed in Q3 2009.