Sian Crampsie
The future of four major offshore wind projects in Scotland is in doubt after Scottish courts upheld a legal challenge brought by conservation group the RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds).
The court of session in Edinburgh has ruled that the planning consents granted to the four projects – Mainstream’s 450 MW Neart na Gaoithe, SDIC’s 750 MW Inch Cape, and SSE and Flour’s two SeaGreen projects – were flawed and should therefore be quashed.
The ruling means that the projects’ developers will have to reapply for planning permission, unless the Scottish government lodges and wins an appeal against the ruling.
Together the four wind farms comprise 335 turbines generating up to 2.3 GW of power. The RSPB believes that the project, located in the firths of Forth and Tay, would result in the deaths of thousands of birds, including gannets, puffins and kittiwakes.
The Scottish government said it would “carefully consider” the judgement and its implications and that it remained fully committed to the development of the offshore wind energy sector.
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