Plans to create the largest solar farm in Scotland could be about to take a step closer to reality.
Irish-based Elgin Energy wants to transform an abandoned airfield in Moray into a huge generator for renewable energy.
About 200,000 solar panels would be installed at the former RAF Milltown, between Lhanbryde and Lossiemouth.
Currently, the country’s largest solar farm is near Errol, in Perthshire, where there are about 55,000 panels.
And Elgin Energy already has permission to build another solar farm with about 80,000 panels at Speyslaw, near Urquhart.
Now the latest development is poised to win the backing of the council after authority planners recommended it goes ahead.
However, due to the size of it, Scottish Government officials will have the final say on the plans.
Moray Council’s planning committee chairman, Marc Macrae, believes the project could open up career options in the area.
He said: “It’s going to create fantastic job opportunities in renewable energy. In Moray, we got more natural light than the Mediterranean so we’re in the right place for it.
“I know there has been concerns with how shiny they might be but they are black so there won’t be any glare. Unless you’re standing next to the airfield, you will hardly see them.”
The plans will be discussed at the council’s planning and regulatory services committee meeting on Tuesday.
The Milltown Airbase was home to bombers during World War II before it has handed over to the Royal Navy at the end of the conflict.
It was returned to the Royal Air Force in 1972 and operated as a gliding school until flying ceased in 1977.
Last year, it was proposed as the home of an outdoor activity centre by Outfit Moray before the charity was forced to abandon the plans.
Fochabers Lhanbryde councillor David Bremner said: “I have solar panels on my roof. There’s a little microclimate on the coast. It’s often clear here but cloudy inland.
“Plans like this shows Moray is really at the forefront of renewables, which is fantastic.”
Despite its name, Elgin Energy has no links to Moray. The firm is named after the street in Dublin where the company was founded.
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