Location

Located in the Forest Estate of Ae, South West Scotland within Dumfries and Galloway, the site lies to the West of the operational Harestanes Windfarm.

Current Stage

As part of the development process, in March 2023 ScottishPower Renewables (SPR) submitted a request for Pre-Application and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Scoping advice to the Scottish Governments Energy Consents Unit.  Copies of the submitted documentation can be found below in the 'Documents' section.

Project History

This project is a result of SPR’s partnership with Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS), where SPR have rights to investigate the feasibility of onshore renewables projects within the National Forest Estate in South West Scotland. The subject site is owned by FLS.

In July 2020 & March 2021 SPR installed two temporary Meteorological Masts in the South West of the proposed site. This has been used to gather data on wind conditions at the site

Community Consultation

Early consultation is key to the way SPR develops projects, and throughout the development process SPR seek to ensure local communities and stakeholders are given the opportunity to provide feedback and are kept informed of project progress. In June 2023, we hosted Public Information Events at Auldgirth Community Hall and Dalswinton Village Hall. These events welcomed local residents, allowing them to share their thoughts, provide feedback, and gain a better understanding of our vision for the development. In September 2024, we held two additional Public Information Events at Ae Village and Closeburn. These sessions provided an update on the project’s progress since the initial events, offering local residents and communities another opportunity to ask questions and comment on the proposal.

Benefits

As a responsible developer and operator of renewable energy, ScottishPower Renewables (SPR) believes the benefits of our projects should be shared with the communities in which we work.  

During the operation of our onshore renewable energy developments, we create and support community benefit funds, empowering communities to control how this money is spent to best serve the needs of their local area. To date, SPR’s operational onshore windfarms have contributed more than £64 million to communities across the United Kingdom. Over £16 million of community benefit has been used to support valuable community led initiatives and projects in Dumfries and Galloway. Harestanes West Windfarm will further increase community benefit funds available to neighbouring communities within Dumfries and Galloway.

Community benefit funds have led to the delivery of a diverse range of projects, which include environmental improvements, educational programmes, heritage projects, the purchase of community transport vehicles, provision of life saving defibrillators, investment in energy efficiency measures within community buildings, and much more besides. Read more about how we engage with our communities here: Powering Communities.

Contact

Webpage
Harestanes West Windfarm - ScottishPower Renewables
Project email
HarestanesWestWindfarm@scottishpower.com

Postal Address
FAO: Harestanes West Windfarm Project Team
ScottishPower Renewables
9th Floor ScottishPower Headquarters
320 St Vincent Street, Glasgow, G2 5AD

If you have any feedback you would like to share with us, please see our Feedback Form.

Project Documents

Please click on the links below to view the Harestanes West Windfarm Scoping Report documents.