Renewable energy firm RES has received approval from the Scottish government for its 99 megawatt wind farm, located approximately 20 miles south of Inverness at Dunmaglass.
The wind farm will comprise 33 turbines, each with a maximum height of 120 metres to the tip of the blade, and is expected to generate electricity equivalent to the average annual demand of around 46,000 Scottish households.
The Scottish government said the construction phase of the development would create work for about 55 people.
Commenting, energy minister Jim Mather said: "This is a another step on the road to a low carbon Scotland, with a further 46,000 homes set to be powered by clean, green electricity. Scotland already gets over a quarter of its electricity needs from green sources and consent for this new development rounds off another tremendous year for renewables.”
He concluded: "This is exactly the type of development that works with local communities to transform Scotland to a low carbon economy and drive economic growth."
Allan Johnston, head of Development for RES in Scotland, added:“Everyone at RES is delighted with the positive decision by the Scottish Government today. Dunmaglass is an ideal location for a wind farm and has no landscape or ecological designations, which is why after careful consideration it has been approved.”
RES applied for consent to construct and operate the wind farm in 2005, but the planning application was amended and resubmitted in 2008 in response to feedback.
The Scottish government's target is to meet 80 per cent of electricity demand from renewables by 2020. In 2009, about 27 per cent of Scotland's electricity came from renewables.
There is currently around seven gigawatts of renewables capacity installed, under construction or consented around Scotland, which will take Scotland beyond its interim target of 31 per cent of Scotland's electricity demand from renewables by 2011.
The Scottish government's Energy Consents and Deployment Unit is currently processing 34 applications (24 onshore wind, five hydro and five thermal).
RES is an independent renewable energy project developer with operations across Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific. The company has developed and/or built more than five gigawatts of wind energy capacity worldwide, including around 10 per cent of the UK’s wind energy.
