Balblair Wind Farm

Vestas Development A/S is exploring an opportunity to develop a wind farm on the Balblair Estate, 2 km north-west of Bonar Bridge with its development partner Force 9 Energy

Current Status

Following community feedback from our first consultation events in March, and the conclusions drawn from a range of technical and environmental studies, our proposals for the Balblair Wind Farm have been revised and updated. Changes include a reduction in the number of turbines from nine to eight, and a reconfigured layout.
 
Earlier this year we submitted a Scoping Request to the Scottish Government’s Energy Consents Unit (ECU). The Scoping Request seeks consultee feedback on the development proposals and seeks to agree the environmental topics that will be addressed in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) which will accompany any future application for the development. The Scoping Report is available to view here.

We are currently gathering information regarding the proposed wind farm, as well as engaging in discussions with local stakeholders, to help shape and inform the final application for consent. We hope to submit an application for the Balblair Wind Farm in late 2024.

Public Consultation

Vestas and Force 9 are committed to open and transparent communication with the local community. We will be holding a number of consultation events to provide detailed information about our proposals and offer members of the public the opportunity to ask questions and provide feedback.

Two rounds of consultation events took place in March and September 2024.

The Site

The proposed site is located within the Balblair Estate, approximately 2 km north-west of Bonar Bridge, and is characterised under Nature Scot’s nationwide landscape assessment as Landscape Character Type 135; Rounded Hills- Caithness & Sutherland.

The predominant land use within the site is rough grazing.

About Vestas

Vestas is a global leader in sustainable energy solutions. Vestas designs, manufactures, installs and services wind turbines around the world and has delivered more than 177 GW of wind power capacity in 88 countries, which is estimated to have avoided 2.13 billion tonnes of CO2 emissions. Since 2001, Vestas has been active in the United Kingdom and employs around 1,600 staff spanning technology, manufacturing, operations and maintenance, and support functions.

Vestas is funding the development and design of this wind farm project and is committed to supplying the wind turbines, managing project construction and providing long-term operation and maintenance services for the plant.

About Force 9 Energy

Force 9 is an independent, UK based wind farm developer, with a focus on developing sensitively designed onshore wind farms. UK wind farms in operation, or consented by the Force 9 team, have the potential to contribute more than 500 MW of clean, renewable generating capacity in the UK. Scotland has abundant natural resources and is ideally placed to be at the forefront of generating clean, renewable energy. Force 9 always takes careful account of the landscape, environments and communities where our developments may be sited, and is committed to ensuring that sympathetic and sustainable design principles are incorporated into our projects.

You can find out more about Force 9 Energy by visiting our website here.

Berry Burn Wind Farm, Moray
Deuchries Wind Farm, Aberdeenshire

Project Benefits

Community Benefit

Force 9’s development partner, Vestas, is committed to paying Community Benefit at the Scottish Government recommended rate: currently at a value equivalent to £5,000 per Mega Watt of installed capacity, for every year of operation (anticipated to be 30 years) to help fund community projects. For illustrative purposes, if a 36 MW wind farm is constructed, this would be worth £180k per year (index linked) for local communities, for each year of operation – a total of up to £5.4 million over the project’s lifetime.

Opportunities for Local Businesses

Vestas and Force 9 Energy are committed to giving local businesses every possible opportunity to share in the financial and employment benefits of the construction and operation of Balblair wind farm. If constructed, Balblair will offer opportunities for local businesses such as accommodation providers, hire companies, fencing contractors, tradespeople and machinery plant owners.

If you represent a local business, please contact us and we will register your interest and keep you informed about valuable opportunities for local businesses connected with the wind farm.

Key Facts

  • Up to eight turbines with an energy storage facility, the combined capacity of which will be in excess of 50 MW
  • Enough renewable electricity to power approximately 34,000* homes per year
  • Up to 30 MW battery storage included on site
  • Up to £180,000 Community Benefit Fund per annum depending on the installed capacity of the wind farm on site
  • Biodiversity net gain designed In

*Please note that this figure is based on eight turbines with an installed capacity of 36MW operating at UK average capacity factor of 35.6% capacity and assuming 3,239 is the average UK household electricity consumption in kW hours (based on most recent statistics from the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Jan 2024 (DESNZ)). 

Timeline

February 2024

Submission of Scoping Request to ECU

March 2024

First Public Consultation

September 2024

Second public consultation

Late 2024

Target submission

2027 (dependent on grid connection date)

Anticipated construction start date

2029

Anticipated start of operations

Have your say

Thank you for you feedback this consultation is now closed.

Contact

You can contact us via phone: 0141 674 8680 or email: info@balblairwindfarm.co.uk