I had never heard of Constraint payments to windfarm operators but apparently when the wind is really blowing the grid can not cope with the power generated, on occasions windfarms have to be turned off, effectively wasting power.


However all is not lost for the windfarm operators as they can get paid to keep their turbines still which protects the grid. In addition to this they have quite possibly received a subsidy from the UK Government (taxpayer) to put up the windfarm in the first place.


Looks like in the rush to get the turbines in place someone forgot to make sure the Grid was fit for purpose.


At the moment there appears to be more turbines than the grid can cope with and that's before the Scotwind project gets going. This will lead to even more Constraint payments.


The claim is that these payments only add £1 per year to your bill, hmmm.......


Until someone is prepared to invest in a better grid link between Scotland and England then it will not be feasible to export power to the areas of high demand.

Not quite the revenue generator that some people would have us believe.


Next time you see stationary turbines it may be that the wind is too strong or possibly because the windfarm is being paid for nothing.


Below is a link which gives more detail.


Constraint Payments to Wind Power in 2020 and 2021 (ref.org.uk)