CAITHNESS, United Kingdom, Dec.
21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- At the North Planning Applications
Committee of The Highland Council on Tuesday the
7thDecember councillors voted unanimously to allow the
Limekiln project variation application to move to the final
decision-making stage with the Scottish Government Ministers.
The decision, which will see two of the 21 turbines removed from
the wind farm at Limekiln, south of Reay in Caithness will allow the application to
progress unopposed by statutory consultees. As well as the removal
of two turbines, the variation to the current consent seeks to
bring a number of improvements to the project, including a revised
track design, allowing improved access during the construction
works to the core path network and an increase in tip heights to
unlock full wind potential and proper alignment with the
neighbouring Limekiln Wind Farm Extension project.
Esbjörn Wilmar, Managing Director of Infinergy said: "I am
delighted that The Highland Council has taken such a positive
decision. The revised scheme will see increased benefits to
the local area, not only in terms of access around the site but in
terms of increased community benefits. The communities of
Caithness are some of those most
in need of such benefits in the country and we are very pleased
that Members recognised how projects such as Limekiln can
contribute during their debate."
More energy produced despite fewer turbines
"While we are looking to improve the track design, we are also
looking to increase the energy yield from the windfarm by
increasing tip heights in line with our Limekiln Extension project
and applying state-of-the-art turbine technology. Even with two
less turbines, this variation will still allow us to generate more
renewable energy than the existing consented scheme." continued Mr
Wilmar. "We now await both the outcome from the Limekiln Wind
Farm Extension public inquiry and the Minister's decision on this
variation application which will then, if both are successful, be
built as one development. In turn this will reduce the overall
disruption during the construction stage. The increase in energy
production and further optimizing the design of the site will also
enhance the economics of the projects."
Limekiln Wind Farm at a glance
Enabling works have already been completed following the
original 2019 Limekiln Wind Farm consent and onsite felling
continues this year to ensure the site is set to promptly move
forward again. Felling work is expected to last until the
spring of 2022. Delaying the main construction contracts will
allow the separate forestry work to proceed unhindered. Subject to
consent being awarded, the operational date for Limekiln Wind Farm
is expected to now be late 2024 at the earliest. Together with the
Limekiln Extension proposal, the wind farm has a grid connection
contract in place for 106 MW.
Located 2.8km South/Southwest of Dounreay Power Station, the
proposal going forward to Ministers will now consist of 19 turbines
and will provide sufficient electricity to meet the needs of at
least 74,000 homes based on the average generation mix of UK power
sources.
Limekiln Wind Farm comes with the industry standard community
benefit fund of £5,000 per MW of installed capacity, equating to
almost £400,000 per year (based on 4.2 MW turbines). In addition,
up to 10% of the project will be made available to the local
community as a shared ownership opportunity, giving the potential
to increase the economic value of the wind farm across Caithness.
Infinergy and Boralex announced the execution of a 50-50 joint
venture agreement in October 2017,
aimed at developing a pipeline of onshore wind projects, including
the Limekiln Wind Farm project, essentially located in Scotland for a total estimated capacity of 325
MW.
NOTE for EDITORIAL STAFF
Infinergy
Infinergy is a UK based renewable energy
company, active in the UK, The
Netherlands and Australia
with a strong focus on the development of onshore wind energy in
Scotland. Infinergy develops wind
and solar energy projects from inception through to construction
and operation. In the UK we develop most of our projects in close
cooperation with Boralex. For more information visit
http://www.infinergy.co.uk.
Boralex
At Boralex, we have been providing affordable
renewable energy accessible to everyone for over 30 years. As a
leader in the Canadian market and France's largest independent producer of
onshore wind power, we also have facilities in the United States and development projects in
the United Kingdom. Over the past
five years, our installed capacity has more than doubled to 2.5 GW.
We are developing a portfolio of more than 3 GW in wind and solar
projects and nearly 200 MW in storage projects, guided by our
values and our corporate social responsibility (CSR) approach.
Through profitable and sustainable growth, Boralex is actively
participating in the fight against global warming. Thanks to our
fearlessness, our discipline, our expertise and our diversity, we
continue to be an industry leader. Boralex's shares are listed on
the Toronto Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol BLX. For more
information, visit www.boralex.com or www.sedar.com. Follow us on
Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.
please contact: Media - Infinergy, Fiona
Milligan, Project Manager, Infinergy, M: 07825 744712,
info@limekilnwindfarm.co.uk; Media - Boralex | Investor Relations -
Boralex, Isabelle Fontaine,
Director, Public Affairs and Communications, Boralex Inc., 819
345-0043, isabelle.fontaine@boralex.com, Stéphane Milot, Senior Director – Investor Relations,
Boralex Inc., 514 213-1045, stephane.milot@boralex.com