Local community join forces to bid for Scottish wind farm

• Four community bodies in Argyll will bid on the Cruach Mhor wind farm in Glendaruel
• Should the four bodies win the bid, it would mark the biggest community-owned wind farm in Scotland
• Bids for the land are being considered later this week

Four community bodies in Argyll, Scotland, have come together to bid on the Cruach Mhor wind farm in Glendaruel in an effort to ensure local people benefit from wind power. 

According to reports, members of community trusts from Dunoon, Sandback, Benmore, Kilmun and South Cowal have formed the Cowal Community Energy (CCE) to lead the land and redevelop from 2029. 

Bids for the land, currently owned by Forestry Land Scotland, are being considered soon, and it is expected that the current lease holder, Scottish Power Renewables, will also be involved. 

Should the four bodies win their bid, it would mark the biggest community-owned wind farm in Scotland and could set a precedent for other community groups to take control of wind farms. 

Alan Stewart, a director of CCE, told The National Scotland that wind farms “take up the land, cause disruption, they impact on the scenery of our communities and they make a lot of money”, adding that the communities get “little benefit”. 

“Often the communities get a token amount back. The local communities should be able to get a full share.” 

Meanwhile, Dr Josh Doble, policy manager at Community Land Scotland, says it was “really impressive” to see how community trusts in Cowal have come together to bid for the lease. 

“There is widespread acceptance that communities should be getting greater benefits from wind farms 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, according to Doble. 

“If Cowal Community Energy gets granted the lease, it will set a groundbreaking example for the renewables sector in Scotland and inspire other communities to do the same.” 

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Would this be the only consumer-owned wind farm in the UK?

Consumer-owned wind farms are growing in popularity. In May 2024, Ripple Energy launched the UK’s largest consumer-owned wind farm, with the Kirk Hill project in South Ayrshire. 

The eight-turbine wind farm generates enough green energy for 20,000 homes and businesses and saves around 29,000 tonnes of carbon a year. It’s also believed the wind farm would generate electricity to power a home for a year every 10 minutes.

It cost £13.2m, but it was funded entirely by 5,600 people and businesses who have bought shares in it since 2022. 

The company’s first consumer-owned wind farm, however, is Graig Fatha. It is owned by more than 900 members and was supported by a grant from the Welsh government. 

The wind farm began operation in March 2022 and according to its live tracker, the typical UK household monthly savings include a £10 saving on their bills, as well as savings of 41kg of CO2, which is the equivalent carbon savings of 14 trees. 

How is the government helping?

The government has a 2050 net-zero goal to meet and since the election in July 2024, it has stepped up its clean energy efforts.

For example, it has  lifted the de facto ‘ban’ on new onshore wind farms in England in a bid to double onshore wind energy by 2030.

Currently, onshore wind development projects are accepted if the following criteria is met: 

• In areas either allocated in a development plan or through Local Development Orders, Neighbourhood Development Orders and Community Right to Build Orders.
• With the narrow exception of proposals brought forward by the above, where the proposal has proved community support. 

In practice, this has been interpreted to mean that any opposition means the proposal cannot be considered acceptable.  

Scotland continues to lead the charge in renewable energy

Last week, it was announced that phase one of Europe’s largest battery storage site is now live in Blackhillock, Scotland and has begun commercial operation to provide Stability Services and help transport large quantities of offshore wind power to required locations. 

The project is owned and operated by Zenobe, an operator of the UK’s grid-scale batteries on the GB transmission network. It has an initial capacity of 200MW and an additional 100MW will be added in 2026, as part of phase two. The total site capacity will reach 300MW/600MWh. 

For context, this is the equivalent of powering 3.1 million homes for two hours, a large number of homes than there are currently in Scotland. 

Read more about the battery storage site on our page, here.

Written by

Tamara Birch Senior writer

Tamara is a London-based journalist and has written about environmental topics for more than four years. This includes advising small business owners on cost-effective ways, like solar panels and energy-efficient products, to help them become more sustainable.

She has used her journalist and research skills to become highly knowledgeable on sustainable initiatives, issues, and solutions to help consumers do their bit for the environment – all while reducing monthly costs.

In addition to adopting sustainable practices in her personal life, Tamara has worked in the retail B2B space to help independent retailers think about their environmental choices and how they can help improve their business. She now uses this knowledge to help consumers do the same.

Her passion for sustainability and eco-friendly solutions stems from a long obsession with nature and animals and ensuring they feel looked after. In her free time, Tamara enjoys reading fantasy novels, visiting the gym, and going on long walks in new areas.

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