Further Information
Read more about the impact of wind farms similar to the MachairWind proposal, constraint payments, Scotland and UK energy policy, and the ongoing campaign to oppose this development.
Media Coverage & Letters About MachairWind Wind Farm
Who Owns the Sea? An Examination of Scotland’s Offshore Seabed Sales
Developers from around the world have secured rights to develop offshore wind farms in Scottish waters through successive seabed leasing rounds. But who actually owns these projects — and where will the economic benefits ultimately flow?
In this article, Dr Lonneke Goddijn-Murphy examines the striking extent of overseas involvement in Scotland’s offshore wind industry. Of the current and proposed offshore wind farms, just nine are being developed by Scotland-based firms, eight involve partnerships between Scottish and overseas developers, while 28 have no Scottish involvement at all.
Perhaps more strikingly, the Scottish Government has no ownership stake in any of these projects, and UK Government involvement extends only to a single offshore test turbine! Meanwhile, state-backed organisations from France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, China and Ireland hold stakes in at least one Scottish offshore wind development.
The article raises an important question: as Scotland leases out one of its most valuable natural resources, who will ultimately reap the rewards?
Britain Turns to Floating Wind Farms - 21.08.26
It could be Ed Miliband’s most expensive legacy. A network of giant floating wind farms is set to fill Britain’s seas – funded by some of the most generous green subsidies ever offered.
The former Energy Secretary signed off plans for hundreds of floating turbines to be moored around Scotland, Wales and Cornwall. Such waters are too deep for wind turbines that are drilled directly into the seabed and floating versions have always been too expensive for companies to bother. So a raft of generous new subsidies targeted at making floating wind profitable were offered – guaranteeing generators prices three to four times above current market value for up to 20 years.
A State of Natural Perfection - An Islay Visitor's Perspective
Charles Hillard has been visiting Islay for 30 years. Here he writes emotively about Loch Gruinart on Islay. He normally avoids politics, but here, amongst his rather beautiful and poetic prose, he provides an addendum which is definitely worth reading.
"Not in my back yard? This is not my back yard. This is the Inner Hebrides. It is not an industrial site. Our Viking ancestors found these islands as we see them now. Longships would have beached on that sand. Gruinart is Old Norse for "shallow ford". Who can possibly put a price on this water?"
Charles also shares a wonderful video Nothing to See Here, which showcases exactly why these wild and untouched areas should stay that way. This video is taken from both banks of Loch Gruinart and from Kilinallan Point out towards Oronsay and the proposed MachairWind site.
Iona Community Objects to Plan for Huge Offshore Windfarm - 17.08.26
More than a thousand years ago the Christian community on the Scottish island of Iona may have looked out to sea and been filled with dread as they saw the sails of approaching Viking longships. Now there are fears that the descendants of that monastic community could look out to sea and witness another distressing sight – a huge wind farm.
The Iona Community argue that this windfarm would destroy the peace of the many pilgrims who visit the island by imposing “a huge industrial landscape on the shores of a particularly world-renowned sacred site".
Opposition Grows Against MachairWind Proposal - 17.08.26
Almost 5,000 formal objections have been submitted to the Marine Directorate in opposition to the proposed MachairWind development.
Hebridean Horizon a local campaign group comprising concerned island residents, confirmed "an incredible 4,819 objections" have been submitted through the ObjectNow platform alone, with more being directly sent to the Marine Directorate by both individuals and organisations.
On a Wind & a Prayer - Monk Rails Against "Monstrosity" Turbines - 15.08.26
Father Seraphim of Mull and Iona Monasteries has spoken out on YouTube against ScottishPower Renewables MachairWind scheme. Offshore wind farm developers have faced down some pretty impressive enemies over the years including President Trump, but now they have come up against new resistance: an Orthodox monk who has settled in the Inner Hebrides.
Father Seraphim has gone vial on YouTube, decrying the scheme and urging people who love these islands and rejoice in their peacefulness, beauty and culture to object in the strongest terms.
Monks Fight ScottishPower Renewables' "Money-Grabbing" Wind Farm Plans - 15.08.26
The founder of the first Orthodox Christian monastery on Iona in more than a thousand years has attached the ScottishPower Renewables windfarm application in the Inner Hebrides as "money grabbing". Many fear Iona's spirituality would be damaged by SPR's plan to build a vast offshore windfarm close to its coastline.
Father Seraphim, who has thousands of followers globally described the plans as "crazy" and "unthinkable", stating that SPR's proposal "pretends to be doing something good, when in fact it is simply a money grabbing political project".
BellaCaledonia Urges Objections to MachairWind Before Deadline - 13.08.26
Bella Caledonia is a Scottish online magazine and political blog that publishes cultural, social, and political commentary. It's latest article relates to the MachairWind offshore wind farm development proposal in the coastal waters of the Inner Hebrides.
The proposed development by Spanish-owned energy giant Iberdrola is an industrial development on a scale never before seen in the Inner Hebrides. It threatens to desecrate and destroy some of Scotland’s most iconic cultural and ecological places. It urges readers to object before the deadline of Saturday 15th August 2026.
Publisher Muddy Pearl Urges Christian Communities to Protect This Sacred Place
Muddy Pearl is a not-for-profit Christian Book Publishing company based on the Isle of Mull. From this Hebridean coastland it publishes new writers and old, and their writing on faith, life and love, spiritual memoir, real life stories and made-up ones, prayer and poetry, humour and difficult issues.
Through this video, Muddy Pearl shows what we stand to lose, and asks the Christian communities it serves to prayerfully consider whether they might help to protect this sacred place for future generations.
The Spiritual Father of Mull & Iona Monastries Urges Communities to Object to MachairWind
Fr Seraphim-Oran (Aldea) is the founder and spiritual father of Mull Monastry (The Orthodox Monastry of All Celtic Saints) and Iona Monastery (The Orthodox Monastery of the Mother of God and Saints of Iona).
In this video he describes the sheer size of the ScottishPower Renewables' proposed MachairWind development and the damage that it will cause to all aspects of Mull and Iona - and recognises how important these islands are for the spiritual well being the local communities, visitors and pilgrims.
The Passive Wind Farm – An Open Letter to Gillian Martin, Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action & Rural Affairs - 06.08.26
And now for some humour! This satirical open letter, inspired by Nigel Johnson-Hill's brilliantly witty 2007 Times letter about grants for not rearing pigs, proposes a revolutionary new business model: an offshore wind farm whose sole purpose is to not produce electricity.
It's humorous, deliberately absurd, and intended to provoke discussion about constraint payments, grid capacity and whether Scotland's energy system is actually delivering the green outcomes the public expects.
The People of Iona Send "Local Hero" to Iberdrola Chairman
The community of Iona has sent a personalised copy of the 1983 film Local Hero to Ignacio Sánchez Galán, executive chairman of Spain’s Iberdrola and owner of ScottishPower Renewables, as the company presses ahead with its proposed MachairWind offshore wind development off the island’s west coast.
Directors have duties that extend beyond securing planning consent: identifying reputational risks that don’t show up in a financial model.
History offers cautionary examples of technically sound projects that became strategic failures because their boards underestimated the importance of place – Brent Spar and Keystone XL among them.
Local Hero Meets MachairWind - Letter from the People of Iona to Iberdrola's CEO
The boss of the energy giant behind plans to build a massive wind farm in the Inner Hebrides has been invited to visit Iona – and sent a personalised version of the film Local Hero to underscore the point.
The people of Iona have written to the CEO of Iberdrola raising concerns about plans to construct up to 144 turbines each the height of the Eiffel Tower, in waters that define this coastline.
The Local Hero Analogy - How Much are Our Islands Worth? - 31.07.26
Joanne MacInness who lives and works on Iona draws parallels between the story behind the film Local Hero and the MachairWind wind farm application in this Herald article.
It looks at the reputational risk to ScottishPower Renewables in terms of corporate judgement and how business leaders have underestimated the importance of place in industrial developments in the past to their detriment. Like the film, this isn't really a story about renewable energy. It's about whether those entrusted with power recognise that some places amount to more than financial gain.
It's Complete Fiction! The Wind Industry's Biggest Lie Revealed...
The wind industry has been perpetuating a massive deception, hiding the real cost of their operations and the strain they put on the national grid. It's time to expose the corporate lies that have been feeding the myth of renewable energy's efficiency.
The truth behind the wind industry's biggest lie is finally revealed, and it's shocking to see the extent of the wind deception that has been going on.
Why are wind farms sitting idle? Why are we all paying for it? And could it change? Watch the video to find out.
Documentary: Why is Britain turning off its own wind farms?
Modo Energy's YouTube video explains why wind farm owners were paid £350 million to switch turbines off in 2025. At the same time, Britain spent over a billion pounds firing up gas plants to replace it. The total bill: £1.35 billion. And it's passed directly onto consumers in their energy bills. Watch the video to find out more!
Yellow Minions - Structures to Anchor Turbines to the Sea Bed
What are these rows of yellow lattice towers and giant barrels that have graced the edge of Leith since the start of this year? What are these yellow Minions?
The simple answer is that they are elements in the construction of the Inch Cape offshore wind farm, and just for a small part of what will become the turbines.
Routine Overcharging for Constraints by Wind Farms
The Renewable Energy Foundation reports that Ofgem has opened an investigation into Moray East wind farm constraint payments.
ScotWind to Deliver £6 Billion Less to Scotland as Wind Farm Supply Chain Spending Shifts Overseas – 26.07.26
Crown Estate Scotland analysis seen by the Herald shows only £25.6 billion of the £88.6bn expected to be spent developing the giant offshore wind projects is currently earmarked for Scotland. Had developers maintained the same Scottish spending share they forecast in 2023, more than £32bn would now be expected to flow into Scotland's economy.
SNP Admits No Community Support for Giant Wind Farms - 19.0726
Humiliated SNP admits there is no community support for giant wind turbines but ignore local opposition.
The Scottish Government has been accused of overriding community opposition to massive wind turbines after Ivan McKee admitted there has been no notes of support for huge developments currently being considered.
Why We Should ALL Care About the Proposed MachairWind Offshore Wind Farm - 01.07.26
Letter written to Round & About (Mull & Iona's local paper) discussing why the people of north Mull (and other communities not directly in the line of sight of SPR's proposed wind farm) may still be affected by MachairWind
TGS Announces MachairWind Application Has Been Submitted to the Marine Directorate – 23.06.26
TGS | 4C (formerly 4C Offshore) is the premier market intelligence and marine consultancy business for the global offshore wind and renewable energy sectors. Today they have announced that ScottishPower Renewables has submitted its application for the proposed MachairWind offshore wind project to the Scottish Government's Marine Directorate.
Council Advised to Oppose Wind Farm off Isle of Lewis Coast – 17.06.26
Planning officers in the Western Isles are recommending that councillors object to a large offshore wind farm off the west coast of Lewis due to negative impact on the environment, landscape and seascape.
Iona Residents Oppose MachairWind Proposal – 14.06.26
Plan for 91 turbines in offshore site of "top tier sensitivity" causes Iona islanders to campaign for Scottish Power Renewables' licence application to be rejected.
Britain Should Stop Building Wind Farms – 12.06.26
The UK Chief Executive of EDF Energy (one of the biggest energy utility groups in Europe) has called for a pause on approval of new wind projects, and to focus instead on using the power that’s already being generated with existing infrastructure.
MachairWind: Industrial Development on a Scale Never Before Seen in the Inner Hebrides - 10.06.26
Scottish Beacon is a collaborative network of independent local newsrooms aimed at strengthening the voice of the community-based media sector and bringing to light under-reported real stories from Scotland’s communities.
Scotland is already a net exporter of electricity, generating nearly twice as much as it can consume annually, and a very high percentage of energy currently generated in Scotland is being discarded due to lack of grid infrastructure to distribute it, with taxpayers in Scotland paying £300m annually for wind farms to turn off their turbines!
Hebrides Cruises Letter Expressing Concern About MachairWind- 10.06.26
A leader in Hebridean local small ship wildlife cruises expresses concern about the impact of MachairWind's proposed development
Offshore Wind Site Should Be Protected Says NatureScot – 05.06.26
NatureScot, the public body responsible for advising the Scottish Government on all matters relating to the natural environment advises proposed wind farm (Berwick Bank, a site of similar sensitivity to MachairWind) should be protected.
Building More Wind Farms Makes No Sense – 09.05.26
Tom Glover, UK Country Manager for RWE, one of the UK’s biggest power producers admits that building more wind farms makes no sense.
Swedish Energy Company Vattenfall Offloads Stake in Muir Mhor Windfarm As Better Opportunities in Other Countries - 05.05.26
When the Swedish company Vattenfall won the Muir Mhòr licence in the landmark ScotWind round in 2021, it said the windfarm would generate enough power for 1.2 million homes and a near £300m boost for Scottish supply chain. However, the oil giant has lost interest in offshore wind projects in Scotland and has offloaded its 50% stake in the Muir Mhòr floating windfarm around 40 miles east of Aberdeen, which it had claimed would be one of the largest developments of its kind in the UK.
Reports & Research from Experts
10 Things to Consider Before Approving Another Offshore Wind Farm
Academic paper by Lonneke Goddijn-Murphy exploring the lesser known (but very important) factors that should be considered before approving any more offshore wind farms.
Goddijn-Murphy, L.M. (2026) 10 Things to consider before approving another offshore wind farm: A case study for Highland, Scotland. Ocean & Coastal Management. Volume 271, 107956
The Wrong Project in the Wrong Place - An Iona Perspective
An opinion from Elizabeth Kucinich, volunteer at Iona Abbey and expert in public policy, organisational development, strategic communications and campaigns.
Elizabeth offers a perspective on why industrial scale development, ecological sacrifice, distant ownership and the export of wealth does not constitute sustainable "green" policy.