Following the development of Dalquhandy Wind Farm by Brockwell, BayWa r.e. have taken the project forward through construction and commissioning, which was completed in January 2023. The wind farm was sold to Greencoat UK Wind PLC. BayWa r.e. are operating the wind farm on Greencoat’s behalf.
Composed of 10 wind turbines and with a total capacity of 42 MW, the wind farm produces enough electricity to supply up to c.a. 31,000 homes.
From a coal site...
...to renewable energy.
About the project
Dalquhandy Wind Farm is located on the restored former open cast coal site located to the west of the M74, near Coalburn. Historically the Dalquhandy site consisted of areas of moorland, coal pits and footpaths that linked the small mining communities to what became the Dalquhandy Opencast site in 1988.
The constructed layout consists of ten 149.9-meter turbines with a generating capacity of up to 42MW. The wind farm site covers an area of approximately 409 hectares in total, with a number of existing access tracks and paths extending across the site and into surrounding areas.
149.9 m
up to 42 MW
supplied with green energy
by BayWa r.e.
Site Location
Access to the site
The site covers an area of approximately 409 hectares in total, with a number of existing access tracks and paths extend across the site and surrounding areas and is well used by the public for recreation. Dalquhandy Wind Farm Limited completed improvement works on the CL/5734/1 core path to bring it to an acceptable condition to allow use by public pedestrians and cyclists. The Core Path CL/5734/1 forms part of the circular village walk, which joins the CL/5735/1 to CL/5735/3 past historic landmarks, such as Wallace’s cave, Greenshield’s Cemetery, Douglas Castle, St Brides Chapel, Brockley Bridge returning to Coalburn village by following various existing paths through the former Dalquhandy Opencast Coal Site or rejoining the CL/5735/3.
In addition to the improvement works on the path CL/5734/1, following the completion of the wind farm construction the network of paths which will form connections running between developments will provide additional recreational opportunities for the communities of Douglas and Coalburn, with the potential for community groups in both villages to further develop walking groups.
Biodiversity Benefits of Dalquhandy Wind Farm
- Cutting the grass around the around waterbodies on site provides a suitable nesting habitat for wader species such as lapwing, curlew, snipe and ringed plover.
- Removal of scrub area of peatland encourages the growth of heather, mosses and other moorland specia, promoting biodiversity.
- Creation of wader ‘scrapes’ which are shallow depressions with gently sloping edges that encourage insects which are an important food source for breeding wading birds and their chicks.
- Nest box added for barn owls to provide suitable nesting locations.
- In addition to that an annual community benefit of £5,000 per MW has been set up.
