Wind turbines in Scotland set a new March record for the total amount of power sent to the UK National Grid since records began, according to analysis by WWF Scotland of wind power data provided by WeatherEnergy.

The analysis showed wind turbines in Scotland provided 1,240,095MWh of electricity to the National Grid, enough to supply, on average, the electrical needs of 136% of Scottish households (3.3 million homes) – an increase of 81% compared to March 2016.

Scotland’s total electricity consumption — including homes, business and industry — for March was 2,146,872MWh, meaning wind power generated the equivalent of 58% of Scotland’s entire electricity needs for the month.

On two separate days — March 17 and 19 — wind turbines generated output equivalent to more that Scotland’s total power needs for each entire day – equivalent to 102% and 130% of each day’s demand, respectively.

WWF Scotland’s director Lang Banks said: “Given this March wasn’t as windy as it has been in some previous years, this year’s record output shows the importance of continuing increase capacity by building new wind farms.

“As well as helping to power our homes and businesses, wind power supports thousands of jobs and continues to play an important role in Scotland’s efforts to address global climate change by avoiding millions of tonnes of carbon emissions every year.

“However, the UK Government’s decision to end support for onshore wind is going to make meeting our international climate obligations much harder in the future.

“The reality is that if we’re serious about cutting carbon pollution in the most cost-effective way, then we need every one of the political parties in Scotland to back the continued deployment of onshore wind power.

“It’s only with political backing for onshore wind from all of the parties that Scotland will be able to maximise the benefits to its economy, as we transition to a renewable future.”