Turbine milestone for Argyllshire Wind Farm

RES, the world’s largest independent renewable energy company, has erected the final turbine this week at Blary Hill Wind Farm near Glenbarr, on the Kintyre Peninsula.

The 14-turbine scheme, which started construction in summer last year, has now entered the final phase of commissioning, testing, and reinstatement work ahead of completion in early 2022.

Once fully operational, the 35MW Blary Hill Wind Farm will be capable of generating clean, low-carbon and low-cost renewable electricity for around 33,000 homes, making an important contribution towards achieving Scotland’s target of net zero carbon emissions by 2045.

Iain MacCallum, Construction Project Manager at RES, commented: “This is a major milestone for the project and we’re pleased with how smoothly the turbine deliveries and turbine erection work has gone over the last few months. It has been one of the busiest phases of construction – not just on site but also for the local area with the delivery of the turbine components – so we are especially grateful to the local community for their patience during this particularly busy time.

“We’ve also worked hard to ensure that we connect with the local supply chain and involve them in the project. Blary Hill is expected to create more than £3.9 million of inward investment for the local economy during the wind farm’s construction and first year of operation and we’ve seen this first-hand by working with local businesses such as Donald McLean Contractors who undertook some of the civil works, Peter McKerral & Co. hauliers who extracted the timber from the site, Campbeltown Motor Company who supplied some of our site vehicles, G McNaughton & Son who provided plant hire, and McFadyens Transport hauliers who helped deliver the 126 turbine components to site by abnormal load. We also recruited labour operatives from Campbeltown job centre – and this all adds up at a local level.”

Margaret Pratt, Chairperson of West Kintyre Community Council, added: “We are very grateful for the care and consideration that RES has shown to our local community during the construction of Blary Hill Wind Farm, particularly during Covid. They have kept us consulted and up to date with the project and coordinated things well locally. It’s also been good to see their commitment to involving the local supply chain with the project as this further benefits the local area. We look forward to the wind farm being fully commissioned early next year.”

In addition to the inward investment delivered through the local supply chain, the community will benefit from essential upgrades to the Barr Glen road, new parking facilities in Glenbarr village, and £30,000 contribution towards a local amenity project. Blary Hill Wind Farm will also deliver around £8.2 million in business rates to Argyll and Bute Council.

Notes to editors:

About RES

RES is the world’s largest independent renewable energy company active in onshore and offshore wind, solar, energy storage, transmission and distribution. At the forefront of the industry for nearly 40 years, RES has delivered more than 21GW of renewable energy projects across the globe and supports an operational asset portfolio exceeding 7.5GW worldwide for a large client base. Understanding the unique needs of corporate clients, RES has secured 1.5GW of power purchase agreements (PPAs) enabling access to energy at the lowest cost. RES employs more than 3,000 people and is active in 10 countries.

Further information about the project can be found at www.blaryhill-windfarm.co.uk.

For further information about RES, visit www.res-group.com.