Regulatory Other

On 8 January 2024, the developers of the Broadshore Hub Offshore Wind Farms, including Scaraben Offshore Wind Farm Limited, submitted a Scoping Report and a Habitats Regulations Appraisal (HRA) Screening Report to the Scottish Ministers / Marine Directorate via the Marine Scotland (marine.gov.scot) portal. The Broadshore Hub is located in the Outer Moray Firth and comprises three distinct but closely coordinated offshore wind projects: Broadshore Offshore Wind Farm, Sinclair Offshore Wind Farm and Scaraben Offshore Wind Farm. For consenting purposes, these three projects are treated collectively as the Broadshore Hub, with separate consents to be sought for each project’s Wind Farm Development Area, Offshore Transmission Development Area and Onshore Transmission Development Area. Within Marine Scotland’s project entry for the Broadshore Hub Offshore Wind Farms, both the “Scoping Report – Broadshore Hub Wind Farm Development Areas, Moray Firth – January 2024” and the “HRA Screening Report – Broadshore Hub Wind Farm Development Areas, Moray Firth – January 2024” are recorded as pre‑application documentation, each with a submission date of 2024‑01‑08. These submissions form part of a request for an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) scoping opinion covering the Broadshore Hub Wind Farm Development Areas, and therefore encompass the proposed Scaraben Offshore Wind Farm. The recorded date confirms that key environmental and habitat‑related scoping material for Scaraben and the wider hub had formally entered the Scottish marine consenting process by early 2024, setting the framework for subsequent detailed assessment and consent applications.