Airtricity to appeal decision

Alternative energy operator Airtricity is to appeal to the Scottish Executive against a local authority refusal to grant it planning permission for a €70 million wind farm.

The Irish group is planning to develop a wind farm with the capacity to produce 46mw of electricity - enough to power almost 30,000 homes - at Beinn Rosail, near Invercassley, Sutherland, in the Scottish Highlands.

The planning and development committee of the Highland Council, the local authority, originally granted permission for the wind farm, but a meeting of the full council subsequently reversed this decision.

Airtricity this week lodged an appeal against the decision to the Scottish Executive, the cabinet of the devolved Scottish Parliament.

Alan Baker, chief executive of the company's Scottish operation, said it believed that it had a strong case for appealing the decision to the executive.

"We have fully considered the reasons given by the council for the decision in respect of Invercassley and we believe the council has wrongly refused our application on the basis of its 2001 structure plan and the new Highland renewable energy strategy," he said.

At standard industry valuations, Invercassley should cost €69 million to develop.

Airtricity already operates two wind farms in Scotland - a 24mw facility at Ardrossan in north Ayrshire in the west and a 72mw plant at the Braes of Doune in the east. They cost an estimated €36 million and €110 million, respectively, to build.