Highland Council delays opinion on RWE npower's Allt Duine wind farm - report

Dec 20, 2011 - Highland councillors have put off expressing their opinion on RWE npower renewables' proposal for the Allt Duine wind farm in the Monadhliaths Mountains in northern Scotland, BBC News said.

The developer, which is a unit of German energy group RWE AG (ETR:RWE), plans to erect thirty-one 125-m (410-ft) turbines near Kincraig, each of up to 3 MW capacity. The wind farm is estimated to produce enough power for some 43,000 local households.

The Scottish government has asked for the opinion of the Highland Council to help it take a decision on the proposed project. Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey planning applications committee is now to visit the site before it expresses any opinion, BBC reported.

The major concern about the project is that it would spoil the view, as it is located near the Cairngorms National Park. BBC Radio Scotland cited development manager Jenny Gascoigne as saying that RWE had taken steps to trim the project's visual impact.

RWE initially intended to build 34 turbines but cut the number after public consultations. The height of the turbines has already been limited to 110 m at three locations.

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