RENEWABLE energy developer Wind2 is proposing to develop three wind turbines on farmland south west of Bennan Loch, around one kilometre east of the M77 and around one kilometre north west of the operational Whitelee wind farm in East Renfrewshire.
The project called Moorshield comprises of three turbines each with a blade tip height of 149.9 metres and a total installed capacity of circa 15 megawatts. Wind2 has been working in collaboration with five neighbouring farms to put the scheme together.
At this scale, the Moorshield turbines would have the potential to generate around 50,000MWh of electricity, sufficient to meet the needs of around 13,000 homes while offsetting approximately 16,000 tonnes of CO2 per year. The wind turbines will operate without any subsidy.
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This new scheme takes into consideration the landscape concerns in relation to a previous larger scale application on the site.
Commenting on their plans Frances Wright, Wind2 project manager for the scheme said: “The development will help contribute towards the 2030 targets to generate 50% of Scotland’s overall energy consumption from renewable energy.”
If the project goes ahead, Wind2 is committed to providing a community benefit fund equivalent to £5000 per megawatt of installed capacity per year. Based on 15MW, this equates to £75,000 per year or £1.875 million over 25 years. The company says there will also be the opportunity for the local community to acquire a direct stake in the wind turbine project.
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“We are really keen to let the public find out about our proposal, in particular their thoughts on how the development can directly benefit the local community,” Wright continues.
“We’ll be hosting a public information event on Monday, 11th November, from 3pm to 7pm at Montgomerie Hall in Eaglesham. I’ll be there along with colleagues from Wind2 and we will be happy to answer any questions people may have.”
Wind2 plans to submit a planning application to East Renfrewshire Council in November 2019.
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