A GROUP of community development trusts has joined forces in a bid to secure Scotland’s largest community-controlled wind farm.
Members of community trusts from Dunoon, Sandbank, Benmore and Kilmun and South Cowal have united to form Cowal Community Energy (CCE).
They are now seeking to lease the Cruach Mhor Wind Farm at Glendaruel and redevelop it from 2029.
The land is owned by Foresty Land Scotland and it is expected that CCE will be bidding against others including current leaseholder ScottishPower Renewables, owned by Iberdrola. The bids will be considered tomorrow.
Alan Stewart (below, left), a director of Cowal Community Energy, said: “The wind farms take up the land, cause disruption, they impact on the scenery of our communities and they make a lot of money. The communities get little benefit from that.
“Often the communities get a token amount back. The local communities should be able to get a full share. The income from Cruach Mhor would be transformational for an area like Dunoon and Cowal.
“Community-owned developments return approx £100,000 per megawatt per year in net profit to their communities, whereas the maximum corporate developments pay in community benefit is £5000 per megawatt per year.
“We are very excited that this could set an example for other communities to take a lease of the neighbouring wind farms.”
Cruach Mhor currently has 35 turbines. CCE proposes to restructure and renew the turbines.
Community Land Scotland policy manager Josh Doble said: “It’s really impressive to see how community trusts in Cowal have come together to bid for the lease. They are a great example of the innovative and entrepreneurial spirit within Scottish communities.
“There is widespread acceptance that communities should be getting greater benefit from windfarms and – whenever possible – they should have the right to own the wind farm and benefit properly from the business model.
“Community-owned energy projects on average deliver 34 times the amount of revenue into communities compared to community benefit payments.
“We want to see this already successful model massively expanded in Scotland”
