US BILLIONAIRE businessman Donald Trump said yesterday he is “fighting for the benefit of Scotland” in objecting to plans for an offshore windfarm.
On Wednesday, he wrote to First Minister Alex Salmond objecting to proposals to put up turbines near his luxury golf course at Menie estate near Balmedie.
In a second letter to Mr Salmond yesterday, he described wind turbines as “ugly” and said he wanted to protect the Scottish coastline.
A planning application for an 11-turbine windfarm off Aberdeen Bay was submitted to Marine Scotland last month.
The European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre is a £150million joint venture by utility company Vattenfall, engineering firm Technip and Aberdeen Renewable Energy Group.
The Trump Organisation filed its objection to the planning application on Wednesday. In yesterday’s letter, Mr Trump wrote: “I know that our recent objection has caused a huge amount of publicity about the horrible idea of building ugly wind turbines directly off Aberdeen’s beautiful coastline.
“Please understand that I am not fighting this proposal merely for the benefit of Trump International Golf Links. Instead I am fighting for the benefit of Scotland. Every location in the United States with a magnificent coastline – nothing compared to Scotland – has successfully defeated these horrendous-looking, noisy and inefficient structures.”
He added: “In any event, I think that my mother, Mary MacLeod, who was born in Stornoway, would be very proud of what I am doing for Scotland.”
Mr Trump’s £750million development is nearing completion.
A Scottish Government spokesman said: “The Menie application was determined properly, according to Scotland’s planning law and procedures, and it will be exactly the same for this proposed development.”