Plans to boost Aberdeenshire Council’s income through wind energy took a step closer to becoming reality yesterday.
Councillors have agreed to spend nearly £80,000 on the first stage of the project, which could eventually lead to six wind turbines being built across the region.
Four quarries would be home to the masts if the plans are developed.
Yesterday, members of the policy and resources committee approved the initial £76,000 contract – which will pay for developing the planning applications and negotiating grid access agreements.
The work will also involve checking the feasibility of the sites and submitting the planning applications.
Ellon councillor Isobel Davidson said: “I’m really pleased to see things are developing.
“I think there may be issues as we go through the planning process, as that is when people will get to comment on the principle of it.
“The sustainability subcommittee asked officers to look at these along with other energy-efficiency measures, including solar panels, so I’m pleased to see things moving on.”
The plans emerged earlier this year, despite repeated objections from Aberdeenshire residents about the proliferation of masts in the region.
Infrastructure services chairman Peter Argyle has also previously called for a moratorium on future developments to allow the planning service time to deal with the influx of applications – more than the rest of Scotland combined.
Two 800kilowatt turbines – which are generally around 250ft – could be built at Newseat, near Strichen, another two at Aikey, near Old Deer and a further one at Pitcaple, near Inverurie.
A slightly smaller one may also be built at Rocks of Balmedie.
The overall development could generate £11.3million for the council over its 20-year lifetime, by both using and selling the electricity generated.
The proposals have also been devised to help the local authority reduce its carbon footprint.
