OnPath Energy (formerly Banks Renewables) has announced the completion of its Kype Muir Extension Wind Farm, which is now exporting clean, green electricity to the national grid after recently completing its construction phase.
Located just south of Strathaven in South Lanarkshire, the Kype Extension features 15 ultra-powerful turbines: four at 156 meters, three at 176 meters, and eight at 200 meters.
Notably, it was the first project in the UK to achieve 200-meter tip heights, marking a significant milestone in turbine technology and renewable energy.
The Kype Muir Extension will generate up to 67.2 MW of renewable electricity, meeting the annual needs of approximately 53,700 households. Combined with Kype Muir, it will offset carbon emissions equivalent to removing 30,700 petrol cars from the road each year.
Gordon Thomson, projects director at OnPath Energy said: "To get over the line with this milestone project is extremely rewarding.
"From our team here at OnPath, to a host of skilled local contractors, everyone has put in a huge amount of hard work to get to this point as we continue to play our part in creating a just transition that is fair and inclusive for everyone. We're thrilled to be at the forefront of onshore innovation in the UK, achieving the national first."
"Kype Muir Extension is going to provide tens of thousands of homes with renewable energy and will have a hugely positive influence on government's net-zero goals in a bid to create a cleaner, greener Scotland."
In 2022, the First Minister at the time Nicola Sturgeon officially marked the connection of the first 200m turbine at Kype Muir Extension, recognising it as a key time for Scotland's renewable energy industry.
The South Lanarkshire wind farm is an extension of OnPath Energy's 26-turbine Kype Muir Wind Farm site.
The extension will feature four 156m, three 176m and eight 200m-tall wind turbines. Scottish civil engineering firm RJ McLeod (Contractors) Ltd which was originally appointed by Banks Renewables to construct the first Kype Muir Wind Farm was also appointed as the contractor for the extension site.
The estimated lifetime regional spend from the first Kype Muir wind farm alone is expected to be around £123M and, as part of OnPath's commitment to local business', local contractors have been prioritised in the same way whilst developing Kype Extension.
The Kype Muir and Kype Muir Extension wind farms have also brought significant community benefits, with a combined annual contribution of over £770,000 available to local people.
Gordon added: "Projects of this scale come hand in hand with long-lasting benefits to the local communities in which they are located, meaning we create value for community groups, businesses, and local initiatives throughout the wind farm's lifetime.
"We've also been lucky to be able to invest in the local economy through the construction phase of this project, by creating local jobs and working closely with local contractors.
"This, and other OnPath projects, highlight how we continue to play our part in Scotland's drive to meet its net-zero targets."
The 41 turbines of Kype Muir and Kype Muir Extension will generate over 155MW of electricity each year, enough to supply renewable electricity to more than 123,000 homes, equivalent to a city larger than Aberdeen.
OnPath Energy is the new name for Banks Renewables. Find out more at www.onpathenergy.com
Issued by Holyrood PR on behalf of OnPath Energy, for more information contact info@holyroodpr.co.uk or 0131 561 2244.
About OnPath Energy
- OnPath Energy is a leading UK onshore renewable energy developer, formerly known as Banks Renewables.
- Banks Renewables was acquired by Brookfield in a transaction that was announced in October 2023 and completed in December 2023.
- OnPath Energy will be led by the same team building on our trusted position in the UK's onshore renewable energy market with the ambition to become the leading land based renewable energy developer.
- OnPath Energy headquarters will remain in the North East of England with an office in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire.
- We are members of RenewableUK, Scottish Renewables and the Independent Renewable Energy Generators Group (IREGG).
- In order to achieve net zero the UK will need to deploy substantial amounts of low carbon infrastructure across the UK for several decades.
- OnPath Energy is one of the UK's leading land-based renewable energy developers with an enhanced portfolio of onshore wind, solar and energy storage projects across the country.
- We believe in placing people and planet at the heart of what we do, that's why the long-term commitments that have been made to the communities in which our existing renewable energy schemes are located remain fully in place.
- We are constantly looking for better ways to deliver renewables projects which tackle climate change, help to drive down energy bills for the consumer and help to improve the UK's energy security over the long term.
- We care about what we do and the way that we do it, including long term relationships with local communities. Last year over £1,000,000 of community funding was awarded to 100+ community groups and environmental projects.
- We believe in being a good neighbour, with a long and proud track record of playing a positive role in our local communities.
- We are committed to bringing local businesses into our supply chain to create local jobs and establishing local panels to guide investment.
- Our projects protect, encourage and enhance the local environment while tackling climate change.
- We work in partnership with landowners to provide additional value to existing business, enable agriculture and developments to proceed.
Key facts
- OnPath Energy is owned by global alternative asset manager Brookfield.
- We have secured planning permission for 14 windfarms and currently operate eleven onshore wind farms across Scotland and the north of England with a combined installed generation capacity of 282MW.
- Our eleven wind farms are: i) Armistead; ii) Hazlehead; iii) Heysham South; iv) Hook Moor; v) Kype Muir; vi) Lambs Hill; vii) Marr; viii) Middle Muir; ix) Moor House and x) Penny Hill xi) Kype Muir Extension.
- We expect our eleven onshore wind farms to generate around 840Gwh per year.
- We have also obtained planning permission for two solar arrays and are developing other renewable and flexible energy projects.
- We have planning permission for 283MW of renewable electricity generation, with a further 532MW in the planning system.
- We have displaced around 776,990 tonnes of CO2 from operational projects to date.
- The 887MW we have in various stages of the planning and build out process is enough to provide the equivalent electricity for around 602,000 gas heated homes or a city larger than Leeds or Glasgow.
About Brookfield
Brookfield Asset Management (NYSE: BAM, TSX: BAM) is a leading global alternative asset manager with over $900 billion of assets under management. Brookfield invests client capital for the long-term with a focus on real assets and essential service businesses that form the backbone of the global economy. Brookfield offers a range of alternative investment products to investors around the world including public and private pension plans, endowments and foundations, sovereign wealth funds, financial institutions, insurance companies and private wealth investors.
Brookfield operates Brookfield Renewable Partners (NYSE: BEP, BEPC TSX: BEP.UN, BEPC), one of the world's largest publicly traded, pure-play renewable power platforms, with approximately 33,000 megawatts of installed renewable energy capacity and a development pipeline of approximately 155,00 megawatts of renewable power assets, 14 MMTPA of carbon capture and storage, 2 million tons of recycled material and 3 million metric million British thermal units of renewable natural gas production annually.
