A PLANNING application for the extension to the permitted lifespan of a successful South Lanarkshire Wind Farm has been approved by the Energy Consents Unit (ECU) securing the ability to operate the site for up to 40 years.
OnPath Energy, formerly Banks Renewables was originally given permission to run Middle Muir Wind Farm for 25 years in September 2014.
However, having carried out regular maintenance work at the site and following review of its ongoing operational performance, OnPath Energy last year applied for permission to extend the lifespan of the fifteen-turbine site by 15 years.
The proposal to extend the project was approved late last year, allowing Middle Muir Wind Farm to produce renewable energy for longer under the existing operational conditions.
In the last financial year from October 2022 to September 2023, the site near Douglas produced around 92,000 MWh of renewable energy. Since 2020 alone, Middle Muir Wind Farm has directly contributed over £350,000 to local groups via the South Lanarkshire Council's Renewable Energy Fund (REF).
Gordon Thomson, projects director at OnPath Energy said: "Middle Muir Wind Farm has been successfully generating significant amounts of clean green electricity for over half a decade now.
"Our aim is to maximise the environmental, energy security and social benefits that all our onshore wind farms can deliver, and we are very pleased that that we have the ability to increase the contribution that Middle Muir Wind Farm can make towards helping the UK achieve its Net Zero targets.
"Many local communities have already benefited from revenues generated by the wind farm and the lifetime extension means that it could deliver more community funding over a longer period to support projects in the surrounding areas."
Middle Muir was granted its original planning permission by the Scottish Government Energy Consents and Deployment Unit, as was, in September 2014. Construction work was completed in December 2018 and the wind farm has been fully operational since.
In its short lifetime so far, Middle Muir has awarded grants between £10,000 and £100,000 to groups facilitating a range of local developments, from constructing disabled access at Douglas Victoria Bowling Club to supporting a campus refurbishment in Abington.
Gordon added: "Renewable energy is crucial for a sustainable future and we're proud of the role we are playing across South Lanarkshire. This extension allows us to further extend renewable electricity generation while creating a positive legacy and enhancing value for local communities."
Wind farm life extensions form part of OnPath Energy's long-term vision to extend the life of existing wind farms across its project portfolio, with a regular maintenance and servicing which in turn maximises the generation of renewable electricity, local community benefits whilst supporting the UK's drive towards Net Zero.
OnPath Energy is the new name for Banks Renewables. OnPath Energy is currently building a new website as part of the re-brand process. Until the new website is ready all project information and news will remain at www.banksgroup.co.uk/renewables.
For more information on Middle Muir Wind Farm, visit: https://www.banksgroup.co.uk/projects/middle-muir/
For more information on Wind Farm Life Extensions, visit: https://www.banksgroup.co.uk/projects/wind-farm-life-extensions/
About OnPath Energy
- OnPath Energy is a leading UK onshore renewable energy developer, formerly known as Banks Renewables.
- Banks Renewables was acquired by Brookfield in a transaction that was announced in October 2023 and completed in December 2023.
- OnPath Energy will be led by the same team building on our trusted position in the UK's onshore renewable energy market with the ambition to become the leading land based renewable energy developer.
- OnPath Energy headquarters will remain in the North East of England with an office in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire.
- We are members of RenewableUK, Scottish Renewables and the Independent Renewable Energy Generators Group (IREGG).
- In order to achieve net zero the UK will need to deploy substantial amounts of low carbon infrastructure across the UK for several decades.
- OnPath Energy is one of the UK's leading land-based renewable energy developers with an enhanced portfolio of onshore wind, solar and energy storage projects across the country.
- We believe in placing people and planet at the heart of what we do, that's why the long-term commitments that have been made to the communities in which our existing renewable energy schemes are located remain fully in place.
- We are constantly looking for better ways to deliver renewables projects which tackle climate change, help to drive down energy bills for the consumer and help to improve the UK's energy security over the long term.
- We care about what we do and the way that we do it, including long term relationships with local communities. Last year over £1,000,000 of community funding was awarded to 100+ community groups and environmental projects.
- We believe in being a good neighbour, with a long and proud track record of playing a positive role in our local communities.
- We are committed to bringing local businesses into our supply chain to create local jobs and establishing local panels to guide investment.
- Our projects protect, encourage and enhance the local environment while tackling climate change.
- We work in partnership with landowners to provide additional value to existing business, enable agriculture and developments to proceed.
Key facts
- OnPath Energy is owned by global alternative asset manager Brookfield.
- We have secured planning permission for 14 windfarms and currently operate eleven onshore wind farms across Scotland and the north of England with a combined installed generation capacity of 282MW.
- Our eleven wind farms are: i) Armistead; ii) Hazlehead; iii) Heysham South; iv) Hook Moor; v) Kype Muir; vi) Lambs Hill; vii) Marr; viii) Middle Muir; ix) Moor House and x) Penny Hill xi) Kype Muir Extension.
- We expect our eleven onshore wind farms to generate around 840Gwh per year.
- We have also obtained planning permission for two solar arrays and are developing other renewable and flexible energy projects.
- We have planning permission for 307MW of renewable electricity generation, with a further 580MW in the planning system.
- We have displaced around 776,990 tonnes of CO2 from operational projects to date.
- The 887MW we have in various stages of the planning and build out process is enough to provide the equivalent electricity for around 602,000 gas heated homes or a city larger than Leeds or Glasgow.
About Brookfield
Brookfield Asset Management (NYSE: BAM, TSX: BAM) is a leading global alternative asset manager with over $900 billion of assets under management. Brookfield invests client capital for the long-term with a focus on real assets and essential service businesses that form the backbone of the global economy. Brookfield offers a range of alternative investment products to investors around the world including public and private pension plans, endowments and foundations, sovereign wealth funds, financial institutions, insurance companies and private wealth investors.
Brookfield operates Brookfield Renewable Partners (NYSE: BEP, BEPC TSX: BEP.UN, BEPC), one of the world's largest publicly traded, pure-play renewable power platforms, with approximately 33,000 megawatts of installed renewable energy capacity and a development pipeline of approximately 155,00 megawatts of renewable power assets, 14 MMTPA of carbon capture and storage, 2 million tons of recycled material and 3 million metric million British thermal units of renewable natural gas production annually.
