Work has started on a multi-million-pound wind farm in East Ayrshire that will provide renewable energy for thousands of homes and businesses and power local regeneration.
Developed by Brockwell Energy, the North Kyle Windfarm project will see 49 Vestas V136 wind turbines constructed over the next two years across land partly owned by Hargreaves Land on the site of the former House of Water opencast mine.
When complete, the wind farm will cover a 2,000-ha site and have a maximum generating capacity of 220.5MW and will generate sufficient energy to power 18,000 households.
The wind farm is also predicted to contribute £35million towards supporting regeneration in the local area.
More windfarm investment is urgently needed to provide the renewable energy the UK requires to reduce its carbon footprint, said Andrew Johnson, head of asset management at Hargreaves Land. He added that ambitious schemes such as North Kyle offer a blueprint for bringing forward similar projects on reclaimed industrial mining land.
“Utilising former open cast land is an effective, viable and environmentally beneficial way to create the onshore wind energy facilities we desperately need to meet our electricity needs,” he said. “We are very pleased to see work underway on the North Kyle Windfarm and look forward to its contribution towards the UK’s net zero ambitions, at the same time creating jobs and bringing investment to the local economy.”
Alex Lambie, CEO of Brockwell Energy, commented: “I am immensely proud of our entire Brockwell team, who have delivered this flagship project after many years of diligent planning and design.
“Not only is the scale of North Kyle of national significance in the push to achieve Net Zero targets, but the project also promises to be truly game-changing for local communities. The financial support and guidance to the 9CCG will help them establish themselves with sound governance, necessary controls and procedures that ensure funding is directed to projects which provide meaningful and impactful legacy benefits to the surrounding communities.”