Allt Dearg Community Wind Farm

The Allt Dearg Community Wind Farm is different to most commercial wind farms in Argyll as it is substantially locally owned and controlled.

It is also different to other community wind farms, as it has been financed without any public sector grant or loan.

In recognition of an outstanding renewable energy project which has been developed in close partnership with a community, Allt Dearg received the first RenewableUK Community Project Award in June 2012.

The landowners recovered control of the site on 23rd June 2008, the ground having been "optioned" by a large scale utility developer whose planning application was turned down in December 2007.

The landowners secured planning consent on 1st July 2010, and secured financial close on the project funding on 21st December 2011.

Construction work started in October 2011 and the wind farm moved to full output on Christmas Eve 2012.

With a windy start to 2013, Allt Dearg passed the historic £1million revenue earned at the end of February 2013.  The monthly Capacity Factor reached 74% in December 2013, and the annual Capacity Factor for 2013 exceeded 50%.  This record Capacity Factor was beaten in 2015, when Allt Dearg exceeded 51%, and again in 2017 when the capacity factor was a "baw hair" under 52%.

See the Visiting Allt Dearg for details of the summer months' bus service from Ardrishaig.