Glasgow-based RJ McLeod secures £67m contract for wind farm

RJ McLeod has won a £67 million contract to lead the ­construction of a wind farm for Swedish energy giant Vattenfall.
South Kyle will be Vattenfall’s largest onshore wind farm in the UK. Picture: Hari Mehrotra.South Kyle will be Vattenfall’s largest onshore wind farm in the UK. Picture: Hari Mehrotra.
South Kyle will be Vattenfall’s largest onshore wind farm in the UK. Picture: Hari Mehrotra.

The Glasgow-based firm, which has already worked on three major projects for Vattenfall, will deliver roads and access tracks, electrical infrastructure, turbine foundations and other work at the South Kyle wind farm in East Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway.

South Kyle will be Vattenfall’s largest onshore wind farm in the UK and at the peak of construction the project will require around 150 workers on site.The 240-megawatt wind farm will be able power 170,000 homes, saving 300,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases annually, which is the equivalent of taking 65,000 cars off the road each year.

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Both Vattenfall and RJ McLeod said they are committed to developing opportunities for local sub-contractors and suppliers wherever possible on the project. Frank Elsworth, Vattenfall’s UK development director for onshore wind, said: “Constructing a wind farm is about so much more than just building a green power station.

“This is about creating and sustaining an industry that offers people a real future in a rewarding career. As well as bringing fossil-fuel free living a step closer, we want to ensure that businesses close to our wind farms have the chance to take full advantage of the opportunities developments like South Kyle can ­create.”

Elsworth said RJ McLeod’s knowledge and expertise “will provide further reassurance that South Kyle will be a responsibly built asset to the local area”.Bruce Clark, joint managing director of RJ McLeod, said: “This is our fourth project with Vattenfall who recognise the skills and experience of our staff and operatives as well as our track record of using local resources, and we look forward to jointly delivering this important energy asset.”

The works at South Kyle will include the construction of 50 reinforced concrete wind turbine foundations, construction or upgrade of about 48 kilometres of access tracks along with substations and cable connection.

The start date for construction is yet to be confirmed but preparatory works are anticipated to begin next month. The wind farm is expected to start generating electricity by early 2023.

Vattenfall has been operating in the UK for more than ten years and has grown its wind business from one project in 2008 to 11 today.The state-owned company employs approximately 20,000 people and as well as its UK interests has operations mainly in Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Finland.

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