Vattenfall’s redesigned Aultmore Wind Farm proposal could deliver a £70 million economic boost for Moray
Sponsored Editorial with Vattenfall
The 16-turbine proposal, which lies halfway between Buckie and Keith, is due to go before Moray Council’s Planning and Regulatory Services Committee this week for their formal response before final determination by the Scottish Government next year. The scheme is predicted to deliver a £70 million boost for Moray and carries local Community Council support.
If consented, the redesigned scheme could deliver a £70 million economic boost to Moray including an £18.4m community benefit fund over the 35-year operational lifetime of the project, an estimated £5.8 million inward investment during construction, and £45.5 million in business rates to Moray Council. Furthermore, the project is predicted to deliver 57 temporary local jobs during construction as well as seven direct and 20-27 indirect local jobs over the scheme’s operational lifetime.
The Council’s response to the application carries a great deal of weight. If the Council objects to the scheme it will trigger a public inquiry, adding another year or so onto the planning process.
The project lies in an area identified by Moray Council as “likely to be most appropriate for onshore wind farms” and was previously consented by Moray Council back in 2014 as a 13-turbine 29MW scheme. Since then, there have been significant advancements in turbine technology, resulting in Vattenfall redesigning the scheme using modern 200m turbines. This has created a 105.6MW proposal which can generate enough renewable electricity annually for around 127,000 homes - more than five times that of the original consented scheme’s 22,000 homes.
Vattenfall’s project team has worked closely with the local community over the last few years to engage meaningfully on the project and listen to feedback. Their dedicated approach has been received well by local Community Councils – with Buckie, Lennox, Portknockie and Findochty writing formally in support of the proposal – and Strathisla Community Council and Cullen and Deskford Community Council taking a more neutral stance.
Vattenfall has also been looking at supporting a local apprenticeship scheme as well as the potential opportunity to utilise Buckie Harbour for turbine deliveries.
Lucy Blake, Vattenfall’s Project Manager for Aultmore Wind Farm, explained “Currently, the Harbour is too small and doesn’t meet the berthing criteria required, so Inverness is the default port for Aultmore. However, with a growing onshore wind pipeline in Moray of over 900MW, Buckie Harbour’s expansion masterplan could unlock significant inward investment for the region from onshore wind if its redevelopment includes accommodation for turbine deliveries.
“We have recently commissioned a ‘Buckie Harbour and Onshore Wind Economic Report’ to assess the net economic benefits to Moray of utilising the Harbour for turbine deliveries – and for Aultmore, the report predicts that the Gross Value Added (GVA) to Moray from the project of £5.8m could increase by 41% from the use of Buckie Harbour and port-related contracts.
“On a wider industry scale, Buckie Harbour’s strategic geographical position could support the wider delivery of onshore wind projects across the Moray, Aberdeenshire and east Highland region. This translates to an estimated £299.8m GVA and 1,705 years of employment for Moray supported by port-related contracts from the potential regional development to 2050 of at least 10GW and the repowering of 2.8GW of onshore wind.
“The report also confirms that developing Buckie Harbour to support onshore wind could deliver the infrastructure required to support other important local industries such as whisky production and cruise ships.”
In addition to the socioeconomic benefits, the project is predicted to offset 177,000 tonnes of carbon emissions annually and achieve carbon payback from manufacturing, construction, operation and decommissioning within 1.3 years.
