Scottish Government-owned Prestwick Airport has expressed alarm at the “magnitude” of being blocked from claiming compensation from wind farm operators for the potential future impact of new turbines on its radar.
It follows ministers last month agreeing with the findings of a public inquiry into a proposed wind farm that the cost of mitigation measures “should be demonstrably incurred by Prestwick Airport and that there is no basis for ongoing compensatory payments to be made”.
A letter from a law firm acting for Prestwick said the decision would have “significant technical, operational and financial consequences for the airport”.
Wind farm operators have hailed the planning decision as a “massive step forward” in halting what they claim is a “manufactured income stream”.
Community Windpower, which was given consent to build 44 turbines near Sanquhar, 30 miles from the airport, last week shelved the scheme because of rising costs, but several other wind farm applications in the area are in the pipeline, against which the airport has lodged objections.
The firm had accused the airport of seeking to profiteer by demanding an agreement for annual payments over the 40-year lifetime of the development in return for withdrawing its objection to the scheme.
But the airport, which received £5 million in wind farm compensation payments from 2019 to 2021 alone, has argued it will have to spend large sums upgrading its radar to mitigate the effects of the turbines. https://www.scotsman.com/…/prestwick-airport-alarmed-at…
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