People sometimes wonder why a landowner would want to host a wind farm. The answer, as this court case shows, is they are being offered rents that would tempt a saint,’ is how Dr John Constable, director of the REF charity, puts it.
‘As a result, the green subsidies that make these high returns possible are now at an unsustainable level.’
Details of how the public’s cash is being splurged are laid bare in an ‘opinion’ on the litigation that was published by Lord Sandison, one of Scotland’s most senior judges, on July 10.
It reveals that Moran’s company Glenfiddich Wind Limited, which runs his estate’s wind farming operations, is suing EDF’s operating firm Dorenell Windfarm Limited for ‘sums allegedly underpaid’ under the terms of its lease.
The claim covers a three-year period from 2022 to 2024. During that time, the contract between the two stipulated that Moran’s firm would be paid either a ‘gross income rent’ based on a proportion of revenues generated by the turbines, or a ‘minimum annual rent’ of £6million, depending on which was higher.
In 2022, he received £8,496,981. The following year, the figure was £9,480,725, and in 2024 it reached £10,406,641.
(summary from Scotland Against Spin – Leading the fight against Scottish wind energy policy)
The court judgement can be read here:
2025csoh62-glenfiddich-wind-limited-against-dorenell-windfarm-limited.pdf