Case Study - Strathallan Wind Farm

Strathallan Phase 1

Perth & Kinross

Strathallan Wind Farm is located in the hills which lie between Strathearn and Strathallan, within Perth & Kinross. Green Cat Renewables (GCR) was engaged as planning and environmental consultants to develop the project from initial conception, through project design, consultation and full EIA. The project was refused at the Perth & Kinross Planning Committee in 2016. GCR appealed the decision and permission was granted by the DPEA in 2019.

GCR was then engaged as Owner’s Engineer and Designer. Construction began in early 2023 with over 3km of new access track constructed onsite. All the stone was won from a site borrow pit, saving the requirement to import over 60,000T of stone.

Due to GCR’s extensive experience of working on challenging sites with high quantities of peat, the design was optimised to use a mixture of floating and traditional founded track depending on peat depths across the site. Utilising floating tracks helped reduced peat excavation by an estimated 20,000m3.

Foundations were designed based on site specific ground conditions using 3D modelling techniques therefore reducing concrete and reinforcement required by up to 50% compared to a standard foundation design.

A brick built substation was constructed to Scottish and Southern Electricity (SSE) specification.

For Phase 1, four used Enercon E-70 turbines were purchased from Business in Wind (BiW). These were inspected and dismantled in the Netherlands in early 2023. They were then stored by BiW and modified for the UK market before being shipped to the UK and installed onsite in Autumn 2023.

Energised in Spring 2024, the wind farm has started to export to the Grid.

The next phase of the Strathallan Project will consist of installing the remaining 5 turbines included in the Planning Permission and utilising these to power a proposed Hydrogen Plant to produce Green Hydrogen.

Key Data
  • 9 wind turbines, 93m to tip height
  • GCR engaged as planning and environmental consultants
  • GCR engaged as Owner’s Engineer for project delivery phase
  • GCR engaged as designer for delivery stage
  • Phase 1: civils infrastructure and 4 turbines installed- onsite borrow pit used for stone
  • 8MW export capacity for Phase 1
  • Green Cat Contracting completed Civils works
  • Used Enercon E-70s supplied, installed and commissioned by Business in Wind
  • Energisation Spring 2024