Controversial Scottish renewable energy link approved

The largest overhead power line project in Britain has received approval from the Scottish government despite fierce opposition from conservation groups.

The 200km line will run from Beauly near Inverness to Denny near Falkirk, and is seen by Scottish ministers as vital for connecting new wind and marine energy capacity that is to be built in the far north of Scotland to the grid.

The new £330m line will replace an existing 132kV power line, with a 400kV line capable of transmitting just over three times more power. However, while the new line will use fewer pylons – 600 rather than 800 – many of the pylons will be a third larger than existing ones, standing up to 65 metres tall.

To placate conservation groups, which have been highly critical of the proposed project's impact on the surrounding countryside, the Scottish government has imposed a number of conditions on the line to minimise its impact in three separate key areas of natural beauty near Stirling, Plean and Crieff.

Community and environmental liaison committees will also work with local authorities and trusts to minimise the visual impact of the new pylons.

Scottish energy minister Jim Mather told the Scottish parliament earlier today that he had balanced economic benefits against visual impact in reaching his decision.

"The key to ensuring that the development is delivered appropriately across Scotland is ongoing engagement with local communities, their representatives and other key interests," he said, adding that the conditions imposed by the government would ensure this engagement is undertaken.

Scotland has a target to generate up to 50 per cent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020 and also plans to export much of its renewable energy to England.

There are currently more than 50 planned renewables projects in the north of Scotland totalling around 4.2GW, including large wind farms at Shetland and Caithness. There are also longer-term plans to turn Scotland into a global hub for marine energy technology, with First Minister Alex Salmond last year predicting that the Pentland Firth could become the "Saudi Arabia of marine energy".

However, experts have long maintained that any new renewable energy capacity will have to be supported by improved transmission lines that enable the power to be carried to population hubs further south.

A major study by the Electricity Strategy Network Group released last March concluded that upgrading the Beauly-Denny line was essential to the government's plans to decarbonise the UK's electricity supply.

"The proposed Beauly-Denny rebuild is an important step in developing a transmission system in the North of Scotland of sufficient capacity to accommodate renewable development proposals," the report said. "With this upgrade in place, further reinforcement of the North of Scotland transmission system can be achieved by the strengthening of other elements of the existing system."

The Scottish government said that in addition to the upgraded Beauly-Denny line it was also planning a raft of further grid improvements, including proposals to construct a new 275kV south-west Scotland transmission line, strengthen interconnectors between Scotland and England, upgrade the east coast transmission route, and install new sub-sea cable links for the Outer Hebrides and the Shetland Islands.

Helen Mcdade, head of policy for conservation group the John Muir Trust, slammed the decision to build the Beauly-Denny line, arguing that sub-sea cables would be more efficient and less intrusive. "Sub-sea cables are now recognised by the industry as the best way to transport electricity over significant distances, particularly if they are from offshore sources," she said.

However, the British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) welcomed the news, arguing that the delay to the new line had resulted in delays to renewable energy projects and reduced output from existing projects. It added that when complete, the new line would enable the development of at least 1420MW of offshore wind, an additional 540MW of onshore wind and 750MW of wave and tidal energy projects.

"This is great news for the UK wind industry, it's the first step in building a 21st century grid system capable of connecting decentralised green energy throughout the UK," said BWEA head of grid Guy Nicholson. "While more grid upgrades will be required to achieve the UK's carbon reduction targets, this important milestone provides the green light for the development of a decentralised grid network, and allows the UK to continue to develop its world-leading offshore wind, wave and tidal energy industries."