West Browncastle Wind Farm
South Lanarkshire

Project

Case study

Type:
Wind Farm

Status:
Operational

Owner:
Nadara

The first project developed by Coriolis Energy to be constructed, West Browncastle wind farm began commercial operation in 2014.

Turbines

The wind farm comprises twelve Nordex N100-2.5MW turbines, each with a rotor diameter of 100m and maximum tip height of 130m.

Maximum generating capacity is 30 Megawatts.

Landowners

All turbines are located on land leased from a local farmer. A further eight landowners are involved either for upgrades to the public highway required for access or hosting other project infrastructure.

2014

Commissioning

Commercial operations started in February 2014 and are expected to continue for 25-35 years.

Overview

West Browncastle Wind Farm is located on agricultural land approximately 9 km west of Strathaven in South Lanarkshire, immediately south of Whitelee Wind Farm. The development comprises 12 Nordex N100-2.5 MW, providing a total installed capacity of 30 MW.

Access is taken off the A71 near Caldermill, initially along Ardochrig Road, then west along an unclassified road that leads directly to the site entrance.

Timeline

The planning application for the project was submitted to South Lanarkshire Council (Ref: EK/10/0358) in September 2010 and consent granted in July 2012. Construction was begun by our partners Falck Renewables (now part of Nadara) in early 2013 and commercial operations began in February 2014.

A community shared ownership stake was made available in conjunction with Energy4All, and the Spirit of Lanarkshire Co-operative (which currently has over 600 members) took a stake in the project in March 2014.

Community

Community fund contributions are made to South Lanarkshire Council's Renewable Energy Fund to benefit communities within 10km of the project. This has been used to support a wide range of local initiatives, including funding new boilers for Strathaven Scout and Guide Centre and restoration of stonework at the Town Mill Arts and Heritage Centre.

The Spirit of Lanarkshire Cooperative also directs a share of its income towards delivering social and environmental benefits to communities near the wind farm. A recent example includes funding solar PV panels, insulation improvements, and battery storage for the Kirkwoodhill and Blackwood Men’s Shed.

Location

55° 39′ 31″ North, 4° 12′ 21″ West

The impact

What is being delivered

million kWh/year

On average, the wind farm generates around 84.4 million kilowatt hours of electricity a year. Enough charge 3,300 electric cars a day.

Based on a rolling average load factor of 26.6% to November 2024 and an electric car battery capacity of 58kwh (as found in a Tesla Model 3 or VW ID3)

Homes powered

The output from the wind farm is enough to meet the electricity needs of 21,500 average UK households.

Based on a rolling average load factor of 26.6% to November 2024 and DESNZ Subnational Electricity and Gas Consumption Statistics statistics showing that annual GB average domestic household consumption is 3,239kWh (updated January 2024).

Minutes

In high winds, the wind farm produces enough electricity to power an average UK home for a year in 7 minutes.

Based on DESNZ Subnational Electricity and Gas Consumption Statistics statistics showing that annual GB average domestic household consumption is 3,239kWh (updated January 2024)

Tonnes of CO2 saved to date

The CO2 emissions saved by the wind farm are equivalent to planting 1,222,000 trees, or to removing 20,300 cars from the road.

Based on:

DESNZ's “all non-renewable fuels” emissions statistic of 437 tonnes of carbon dioxide per GWh of electricity supplied in the Digest of UK Energy Statistics (July 2024) Table 5.14 (“Estimated carbon dioxide emissions from electricity supplied”)
DfT's NTS0901 statistic (August 2024) of an average diesel car covering 8,300 miles per year and manufacturer's published emissions data for a VW Golf 2.0 TDi of 115g/km
EcoTree estimate that a typical tree absorbs 25kg CO2 per year