Location MapRWE npower renewables was granted planning permission for the eight-turbine Kildrummy Wind Farm on Thursday 6 August 2009.

The 16 megawatt (MW) development on the Kildrummy Estate, which is 6km west of Lumsden, was given the go-ahead following a week-long public inquiry in December 2008.

Project manager Mark Crawford said: "We are delighted at this decision. This has been a long and challenging journey through the local planning system. This result will now finally allow us to commit our efforts fully to aiding the Scottish Government's target of producing 50% of electricity from renewable sources by 2020."

Proposals for the wind farm, which will be capable of supplying the average annual electricity needs of around 7300 homes each year¹ were first announced in 2003. An initial planning application was submitted to Aberdeenshire Council in December 2004 and a revised application was submitted two years later in order to reduce concerns raised by statutory consultees and local residents.
In September 2007, Aberdeenshire Council refused the proposal, stating it would have an adverse impact on the landscape character of the area.

The public inquiry heard evidence from RWE npower renewables, Aberdeenshire Council, Cairngorms National Park Authority and Kildrummy Windfarm Action Group (KWAG).

Mark Crawford added: "We were profoundly disappointed when Aberdeenshire Council refused the application, but we have always been confident that the project is well-sited, complies with planning policy and will have an acceptable visual effect on the local landscape."
The project is currently expected to enter the construction phase in 2010 and begin generation in 2011.

Notes
1. Energy predicted to be generated by the proposal is derived using wind speeds monitored in the local area and correlating to a Met. Office station providing longer term data. This enables a calculation to be made to estimate the average annual energy production for the site based on 8 turbines each of rated capacity 1.3 MW. The energy capture predicted and hence derived homes equivalent or emissions savings figures may change as further data are gathered.
Equivalent homes supplied is based on an annual electricity consumption per home of 4700 kWh, which is derived from a total UK domestic electricity consumption of 117.589 terawatt-hours (TWh) (The Digest of UK Energy Statistics 2005) and 25.2 million UK households (Mid-year Household Estimates published in 2004 by the Office for National Statistics).