Background

The Breezy Hill Energy Project comprises areas that are held by Brockwell Energy under option with Scottish Ministers (under management of Forestry and Land Scotland). The site is located approximately 13 km south-east of Ayr, 8.5 km south-west of Cumnock and 4.5 km north of Dalmellington and directly adjacent to its sister scheme the North Kyle Energy Project which is currently under construction.

Originally North Kyle was envisaged to be a 300MW site encompassing both the North Kyle and Breezy Hill boundaries, however only 212MW of grid capacity was available at the time of request to National Grid ESO leading to North Kyle being developed separately.  In April 2022 following further discussions with National Grid, an additional 80MW of grid capacity became available with a 2028 connection date leading directly to the initiation of the Breezy Hill Energy Project.

Although sharing a common border, North Kyle and Breezy Hill are separate projects and will be operated independently.

Project Details

Breezy Hill Energy Project is an 80MW wind scheme comprising up to 26 wind turbines with a maximum 149.9m tip height.

The preliminary turbine locations are shown on the drawing below:

In addition to the turbines, the key components of the proposals are:

• Turbine foundations;

• Crane hardstandings;

• A site entrance for each section of the proposed development;

• Internal and private access road network;

• Watercourse crossings;

• On-site borrow pit(s) depending on the suitability of site-won materials to provide aggregate for the construction of the development;

• Transformers and underground cables;

• Onsite substation / switchgear building;

• One or more temporary construction compounds;

• Potential battery energy storage system (BESS).

Polquairn Windfarm

Development of the Polquhairn Wind Scheme, which sites directly to the west of Breezy Hill, has been halted by its developer Orsted Onshore UK Limited. Brockwell is pleased to have acquired from Orsted various reports and survey data to see if this can be used to inform and optimise the design and delivery of Breezy Hill. An announcement on the Polquairn scheme can be found here.

Environmental Impact

Through North Kyle and Polquairn, Brockwell already has extensive survey information dating back to 2021.  To bolster this further, independent consultants ITPEnergised have been appointed to perform an environmental impact assessment (EIA) which will assess the impact of the scheme on local sensitivities such as visual impact, ecology, ornithology, geology, peat, forestry, noise, cultural heritage and archaeology. Additionally, it will consider interaction with access and local traffic, aviation, telecommunications, and shadow flicker.

The results of the assessment will be presented in an EIA report and submitted to the Scottish Government as part of the planning application.  This report (and all other project documentation) will be available to the public via the Energy Consents Unit website.

Lasting Benefits

Brockwell is committed to ensuring that the North Kyle and Breezy Hill projects bring meaningful, long-lasting benefits to the local area and communities.  This is being achieved is several ways:

Community Support – Breezy Hill has committed to provide £400,000 annually to the 9CCG, a group representing the nine communities local to wind development in and around the Cumnock & Doon Valley Area. The group was formed to coordinate the distribution of community benefit funds allocated from newly consented and future wind farm developments. This commitment is index linked and will last for the full 40 year lifespan of the project.

Restoration and Regeneration – The North Kyle Forest Masterplan, being delivered by FLS, EAC and Brockwell, is providing comprehensive land restoration, regeneration and re-wilding to former open cast mining sites in the Cumnock & Doon Valley Area.  This work is ongoing with North Kyle having invested ~£800,000 to date in peat replacement, land management and road improvements (with another £2 million planned), plus another £600,000 already provided to EAC for broadleaf planting. A proportion of the Breezy Hill community benefit will be used to continue this restoration and open the area to the public by creating further road, walking and cycling access.

Visitors Centre and Recreation Zone – Brockwell propose that Breezy Hill will build on the restoration works delivered by the North Kyle scheme by creating a “destination” visitors centre for family-friendly recreation in an open space, combining beautiful scenery and rich ecology. In the right location, the centre could boast a café, public facilities (including toilets and shower), pedal and e-bike rental, community spaces, access around the Coyle Water loch with beach, picnic and play areas, and water sports facilities for swimmers, canoeists and paddleboarders. Funding for the centre will be achieved by drawing forward the first 10 years of the community benefit, making it available from day one.

Project Timeline

Indicative project timeline as follows:

Public Consultation

The first public consultation will be held on Thursday 6 June 2024 from 1:00 – 7:00pm at the following location:

Rankinston Community Education Centre | LittleMill Place | Rankinston | KA6 7HB

All visitors are welcome and we would be delighted to speak to you and answer any questions or concerns you may have about the scheme.

Our consultation materials can be found at the links below:

• Mail Drop Flyer

• Community Invitation

• Exhibition Boards

Breezy Hill Energy Project Public Consultation

B730 road closure between between Polnessan and Littlemill

Additional alternative consultation event in Dalmellington Friday 7 June 11am-3pm

We understand that the road closure and associated diversion on the B730 is causing delays and frustrations to local drivers. Although the diversion is allowing access to Rankinston, we note that is causing extra inconvenience for anyone planning to attend the Breezy Hill public exhibition in Rankinston Community Education Centre on Thursday between 1pm and 7pm.

As this particularly affects residents in Dalmellington and Patna, although it is short notice, we will publicise and offer an additional opportunity to attend the exhibition by hosting a consultation event in our offices in Dalmellington on Friday 7 June between 11am and 3pm.

Our offices are located at 27 Main Street, Dalmellington, KA6 7QL.

Coffee and refreshments will be served and we would welcome anyone interest in finding out more about the scheme.

For the avoidance of doubt, the consultation event in the Rankinston Community Education Centre on Thursday 6 June between 1pm and 7pm will be proceeding as planned and advertised.