Turbine investor set for £15m deal

A FORMER residential property developer is on the cusp of pulling off his largest renewable energy deal to date as he moves towards having £175 million-worth of wind power sites in the planning system.

Hamilton-based Mark Wilson, who bought and sold land for housing developments but moved into alternative energy following the collapse of the property market, is working with developers to erect single wind turbines on ten sites in the Central Belt in a 15m deal.

Wilson - who is working with developers north and south of the Border, including Glasgow-based civil engineering firm RJ McLeod - uses "medium-sized" wind turbines that generate 500 kilowatts of electricity, enough to power more than 100 homes.

The renewable energy division of his Intelligent Land Investments firm is set to turn over up to 10m this year, rising to a possible 15m next year.

Omagh-born Wilson said: "The Scottish Government's feed-in tariff has revolutionised how much farmers and other landowners can make through wind power.

"They could get up to 30,000 a year, guaranteed for the next 20 years."