A green energy industry worker has captured a striking video of a minke whale taking a swim next to a Scottish offshore wind turbine.
SSE Renewables shared the footage, filmed by Gareth Rodgers, of the animal making a surprise visit to one of the units at the Seagreen development, off Angus.
In the video, the minke, a species of baleen whale, surfaces and blows before heading away from the turbine.
According to NatureScot, minke whales are usually between 23ft and 30ft long, can live for up to 50 years, and are often seen in Scotland during spring and summer months.
In a post on Twitter, the Seagreen project team said: “Minke Monday – here’s a lovely video of a minke whale that we’ve captured on camera next to one of our Seagreen turbines. Thanks so much to Gareth Rodgers for sharing.”
It is not the first time the creatures have been spotted interacting with energy infrastructure in the North Sea.
Last year a turbine technician working on SSE Renewable’s Beatrice wind farm, about eight miles off the Caithness coast in the Outer Moray Firth, captured stunning footage of whales.
Danish renewable energy giant Orsted has also shared a video of a minke near its Hornsea One wind project.
Meanwhile, the crew of the Maersk Innovator, now called the Noble Innovator, videoed a minke carrying out its own subsea inspection.
Seagreen
Seaway7 added the final foundation to Seagreen last month, concluding an 18-month installation campaign.
The final, 114th jacket foundation was installed by the Saipem 7000 crane vessel.
A joint venture between TotalEnergies (51%) and SSE Renewables (49%), Seagreen will be Scotland’s largest and the world’s deepest fixed foundation offshore wind farm, once complete.
It is estimated the project’s 114 turbines will provide enough green energy to power more than 1.6 million homes, the equivalent to two-thirds of all Scottish households.
They are also expected to displace more than 2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide from electricity generated by fossil fuels every year.
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