Wind farm near Innerwick given the go-ahead.
Partial consent has been granted for a wind farm near Innerwick which could power the equivalent of more than 32,000 homes and create jobs for the area.
The Aikengall II wind farm, six kilometres south of Innerwick, is expected to have 19 turbines and have a generating capacity of up to 68.4MW. The consented scheme has three fewer turbines than the developer applied for, to mitigate the visual impact on the Oldhamstocks Conservation Area.
The construction of the wind farm will create around 100 jobs, with five full time jobs thereafter. The scheme will lead to around £98 million capital investment, the majority of which will be spent in Scotland.
Energy Minister Fergus Ewing said: “The Aikengall II windfarm will create jobs both in its construction and during its lifetime, as well as having the capacity to supply more than 32,000 homes with renewable electricity and displace around 77,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually.
“The development will lead to £98 million of capital investment, mostly spent in Scotland. The turbines for the development will be constructed in Campbelltown. The construction of the site will create 100 jobs, as well as five permanent jobs operating the windfarm.
“In consenting the application, I have put a number of conditions in place to protect local wildlife and to minimise environmental impacts including to set noise limits for the windfarm.”
Developers Community Windpower Limited applied for consent to operate the Aikengall II – Wester Dod Community Windfarm on 4 September 2009, and submitted supplementary information following this. A Public Local Inquiry was held in Haddington between June and November 2011.
A total of 481 public representations were received, 101 objections and 380 letters of support.
The Scottish Government has now determined 79 energy applications, including this consent, since May 2007. Of these, 56 have been consents for renewable developments: 32 onshore wind, one offshore wind, 19 hydro, four wave and tidal and 17 non-renewable projects since May 2007. The Scottish Government has rejected six energy applications since May 2007, all of which were onshore wind farms.
The Scottish Government’s Energy Consents and Deployment Unit is currently considering another 46 applications of 50MW capacity generating stations, including 44 renewables: two hydro, four biomass, 38 onshore wind. There are also two applications for non-renewable hydro schemes. In addition to this, there are 11 active applications for overhead lines, and at present no pipeline applications.
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