AN APPLICATION has been lodged for 12 miles of underground cabling to help carry the green energy from what is planned to be Scotland's largest offshore wind farm to the national grid.

Seagreen Wind Energy's application to Angus Council for consent for onshore infrastructure required for its Firth of Forth Offshore Wind Zone also includes a new electricity substation.

The final plan could see 700 turbines installed.

The company, a joint venture partnership between SSE Renewables and American firm Fluor Limited, applied to Marine Scotland in October for permission to build the first phase.

This is two wind farms of 75 turbines each, with a total capacity of 1050 megawatts. If permission is granted for the developments they would be located 16.7 miles and 23.6 miles off the Angus coast.

The underground cables are to transmit the power from a landfall location at South Carnoustie onto the grid connection point at the existing substation at Tealing, north of Dundee.

Meanwhile, news that communities in England are to have a greater say in the location of wind onshore farms, while reaping increased benefits from those that are approved, has had a mixed reception from campaigners in Scotland.

Some are urging the Scottish Government to emulate the new approach, while others see it as divisive.

The industry and the Scottish Government say the extra money proposed is already the average community benefit north of the border.