The proposals are set out in a scoping report submitted to the Scottish government’s Energy Consents Unit.
The scheme would have a potential generating capacity of more than 50MW - enough to provide over 36,000 homes with electricity. It would have the same National Grid connection as the firm’s approved Lethans Wind Farm, a development of 22 turbines with output of up to 105.6MW.
Banks’ Lethans Wind Farm was given the green light ahead in October 2020, after plans were revised to maximise the supply of electricity.
Banks said that the wind farm extension has the potential to deliver a range of benefits to the area, from supporting local jobs and working with local firms to delivering a community benefit fund of up to £9.9m, while displacing around 33,000 tonnes of CO2 annually.
It said that it keen to replicate its Connect2Renewables South Lanarkshire initiative, which is currently creating employment opportunities for those living close to its Kype Muir and Middle Muir wind farms.
It expects that the construction phase of Lethans and Lethans Extension will see over £40m go to Scottish contractors. In addition, a £1.3m skills and training fund for the first five years could support over 400 local unemployed people get into work or training.
Robin Winstanley, sustainability and external affairs manager at Banks Renewables, said: “This is an exciting project and represents an important contribution towards Scotland’s Net Zero goals by 2045. While we’re at a very early stage in developing our plans for Lethans Wind Farm Extension, we strongly believe the community should be involved from the start.”
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