Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire
Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire was paid £41m last year to switch off its wind farms, because the wires south were full. That would cover every local household's electricity for about 1.3 years. A further 453 MW of approved clean power (almost all onshore wind) is still waiting to be built here: enough to supply a year's electricity to 398,000 homes. A 200 MW battery approved at Knocknagael, Essich in 2026 would store power that is currently wasted; it has not been built. A 50 MW battery was refused planning here in 2024; while discharging it could have supplied about 175,000 homes.
The waiting list
Every approved, unbuilt project
| Site | Technology | Enough for | Capacity | Approved | Waiting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloiche Wind Farm | Wind Onshore | 109,000 homes | 125.0 MW | 2023-11 | 2.7 yrs |
| Bhlaraidh Wind Farm Extension | Wind Onshore | 73,000 homes | 84.0 MW | 2022-08 | 3.9 yrs |
| Corriegarth 2 | Wind Onshore | 59,000 homes | 67.2 MW | 2023-12 | 2.6 yrs |
| Bunloinn Wind Farm | Wind Onshore | 58,000 homes | 66.6 MW | 2024-04 | 2.3 yrs |
| Aberarder Wind Farm | Wind Onshore | 44,000 homes | 49.9 MW | 2017-04 | 9.3 yrs |
| Glen Ullinish Wind Farm | Wind Onshore | 44,000 homes | 49.9 MW | 2015-03 | 11.4 yrs |
| Allt na Moine | Small Hydro | 2,300 homes | 2.0 MW | 2014-07 | 12.0 yrs |
| Lochaber Hydro Development (Scheme 3) | Small Hydro | 2,300 homes | 2.0 MW | 2019-03 | 7.4 yrs |
| Gaineamhach Hydro Scheme Powerhouse | Small Hydro | 2,300 homes | 2.0 MW | 2023-10 | 2.8 yrs |
| Allt Garaidh Ghualaich Hydro Scheme Powerhouse | Small Hydro | 1,300 homes | 1.1 MW | 2018-03 | 8.3 yrs |
| Lochaber Hydro Development (Scheme 2) | Small Hydro | 1,300 homes | 1.1 MW | 2019-03 | 7.4 yrs |
| Longman Pumping Station, Longman Drive - Photovoltaic Panels | Solar Photovoltaics | 200 homes | 0.7 MW | 2024-06 | 2.1 yrs |
| Gorthleck - Wind turbine | Wind Onshore | 400 homes | 0.5 MW | 2024-03 | 2.4 yrs |
| Allt an t-Sidhein Hydro Scheme | Small Hydro | 600 homes | 0.5 MW | 2019-10 | 6.8 yrs |
| Feed Millakin - Solar Panels | Solar Photovoltaics | 100 homes | 0.3 MW | 2023-07 | 3.0 yrs |
| Raigmore Hospital, Old Perth Road - Solar Canopy | Solar Photovoltaics | — | — MW | 2023-11 | 2.7 yrs |
Plus 2 more approved within the last two years.
Batteries
| Site | Size | Status | While discharging |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knocknagael, Essich - Battery Energy Storage System | 200 MW | approved, not built 2026 | could supply ≈701,000 homes |
| Beinneun II Windfarm | 160 MW | in planning | could supply ≈561,000 homes |
| Glen Ullinish II - Wind Farm | 120 MW | in planning | could supply ≈420,000 homes |
| Clune Wind Farm - Battery Energy Storage | 100 MW | in planning | could supply ≈350,000 homes |
| Lynemore Wind Farm | 50 MW | in planning | could supply ≈175,000 homes |
| Tomchrasky Estate Wind farm | 50 MW | approved, not built 2025 | could supply ≈175,000 homes |
| Fairways Business Park - Battery Storage | 50 MW | refused 2024 | could supply ≈175,000 homes |
| Torrdhuin, Auchteraw Battery Storage Facility | 50 MW | 2021 | could supply ≈175,000 homes |
| Highland Wind Farm - Battery Storage | 30 MW | in planning | could supply ≈105,000 homes |
| Abhainn Dubh Wind Farm | 30 MW | in planning | could supply ≈105,000 homes |
| Kyllachy Wind Farm - BESS | 22 MW | in planning | could supply ≈77,000 homes |
| Ben Aketil Wind Farm - Repowered & Extended | 20 MW | in planning | could supply ≈70,000 homes |
Wind farms paid to switch off
| Site | Paid, 12 months | Energy lost | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stronelairg Wind Farm | £14m | a year of 64,000 homes' electricity | high |
| Bhlaraidh (previously Balmacaan) | £7.8m | a year of 37,000 homes' electricity | high |
| Dunmaglass Wind Farm | £5.2m | a year of 23,000 homes' electricity | high |
| Glen Kyllachy Wind Farm | £4.0m | a year of 32,000 homes' electricity | high |
| Corriegarth | £3.2m | a year of 16,000 homes' electricity | high |
| Edinbane Wind Farm | £2.1m | a year of 7,600 homes' electricity | high |
| Farr Wind Farm | £1.8m | a year of 7,900 homes' electricity | high |
| Moy Wind Farm (2nd Application) | £1.6m | a year of 6,700 homes' electricity | high |
| Beinneun | £1.2m | a year of 4,700 homes' electricity | high |
| Beinneun Windfarm Extension | £330k | a year of 1,300 homes' electricity | high |
What this page does not show
The switch-off figure covers the big wind farms on the national grid only; smaller farms on the local grid are switched off invisibly, so it is a floor. Offshore wind is counted nationally, never per seat. The planning database can run a quarter behind reality.
Electricity does not travel from a particular project to particular houses. Everything generated goes into the national grid and everyone draws from that shared pool, so "enough for X homes" is a way of sizing the electricity — not a claim that these homes would be powered by this site. Battery storage is counted separately from generation: it moves power in time rather than making it.
Planning statuses come from the government's planning database (REPD), which records what was decided and when, but not why. Where a project was refused we say so and name the authority; for the reasons, look up the planning reference on that council's own register. How to check any figure on this page →
What has Mr Angus MacDonald said about the grid in Parliament? Search Hansard →