Plans for super-efficient wind farm in Scotland that could power 45,000 homes take step forward

Proposed £155million Mill Rig Wind Farm on the border of East Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire will start construction next Spring and go online in 2026.

Plans for a super-efficient wind farm in Scotland that could power more than 45,000 homes have taken a big step forward.

Site investigations for the proposed Mill Rig Wind Farm on the border of East Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire have now been completed. Located near Darvel, the £155million site will feature six state-of-the-art turbines considered among the most efficient in the UK.

They’ll the capacity to generate up to 132GWh of renewable electricity annually after the facility comes online in Spring 2026. Construction is set to begin next March.

Developers OnPath Energy - formerly Banks Renewables - say the project will also provide up to £167,000 per year to a community benefit fund. It will also see investment of around £91million in the local economy.

Top news stories today

• Kingpin snared by pal's brothel bender
• NC500 tourists in horror campervan crash
• Ex-hoods swap criminal past to give back
• Scuba diver's Orkney death 'preventable'

Project director Gordon Thomson said: “We have been carrying out a wide range of tests and surveys on the Mill Rig site since May and are pleased with the results from this. Once operational, Mill Rig is a site that will deliver 30 years’ worth of clean energy to homes across the country as well as delivering significant benefits for local communities for many years. While we are still to confirm a grid connection date, we expect the site to be fully operational in 2026.”

Developers say the project will displace approximately 27,000 tons of carbon annually from the UK’s electricity grid, equivalent to removing around 16,000 petrol cars from the road. And they claim it will directly support 300 jobs over its lifetime as well as indirectly supporting many others via the wider supply chain.

The site was given the green light by South Lanarkshire Council in 2022 and will feature some of the UK’s most efficient onshore wind turbines. The council is set to earn £18million in business rates from the scheme.

OnPath Energy recently announced the completion of the Kype Muir Extension Wind Farm in nearby Strathaven, the first UK project to achieve 200-metre turbine tip heights. Including the original Kype Muir site, which has been operational since 2019, both sites now feature a total of 41 turbines, generating more than 478 GWh of electricity annually - enough energy to power Aberdeen.

The firm has obtained planning permission for 14 wind farms and currently operates 11 onshore wind farms across Scotland and northern England. Scotland has seen huge growth in wind power over the last 15 years - however, critics claim this has not been matched by the scale of green jobs.

Don't miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond - Sign up to our daily newsletter here.

Story SavedYou can find this story in  My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.