Perth and Kinross Council decides not to object to 100MW energy plant
The application will be determined by the Scottish Government's Energy Consents Unit due to its size
Perth and Kinross Council (PKC) has not objected to a proposed 100MW energy plant near Coupar Angus.
The proposed electricity generation station at Kettins would be situated on 4.2 hectares of farmland currently used for crops.
PKC's Planning and Placemaking Committee was asked on Wednesday June 11 to consider the application, submitted to the Scottish Government due to its size.
In December 2024 Cogeo Planning and Environmental Services Ltd submitted a planning application to the Scottish Government, on behalf of Merseyside-based Balance Power Projects Ltd to build and operate the proposed electricity generating station. The application site, referred to as Hallyburton BESS, sits within the Hallyburton Estate, Kettins.
Planning applications for battery energy storage systems which are 50MW or higher require approval from Scottish Ministers. The Scottish Government's Energy Consents Unit consulted PKC on the proposed development on land 260m south east of Colbeggie Farm Cottage, Kettins.
The footprint of the built area would be 1.3 hectares - just smaller than the combined size of two football pitches. The built site would include: 28 battery blocks - with each block containing four battery containers; 28 inverter and transformer units; two auxiliary transformers; two control room and welfare units; two private substations; two storage rooms and two district network operator (DNO) rooms. The development would also include access, lighting, security fencing, drainage and acoustic fencing.
The site is currently being used for crops and sits within an agricultural rural landscape of Coupar Angus bounded by hedgerows and post and wire fencing.
Last week, PKC's Planning and Placemaking Committee was asked to consider whether or not to object to the application. If PKC had objected, it would have triggered the requirement for a public inquiry to be held to consider the application.
The committee's convener SNP councillor Ian Massie put forward a motion not to object to the application. It was seconded by Conservative councillor David Illingworth.
Conservative councillor Ian James raised concern "it was too large" and "on a prime agricultural site". Cllr Bob Brawn agreed but the pair were unable to table an amendment -to oppose the application - which was deemed legally competent.
National planning policy does allow for energy developments to be built on prime agricultural land.
The report of handling - put before councillors - said: "...the global/local need for energy is outweighed by the small loss of land proposed for this development. Furthermore, the site has been designed so the land is minimally disturbed."
And councillors were told there was nothing to show the plant was taking more land than required for 100MW.
The committee agreed to uphold planners' recommendation not to object to the application.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The National
an hour ago
- The National
SNP minister hits out at Labour Government's welfare cuts
Equalities Minister Kaukab Stewart's comments came as she launched the Scottish Government's Disability Equality Plan in Glasgow on Friday, a report which aims to put disabled people's experiences and concerns at the centre of policymaking. The plan – which has been in the making since 2016 – looks to improve access to mental health, advice and support services, as well as funding training for policymakers and leaders to build understanding of the issues facing disabled people. READ MORE: Independent MPs table amendment to scrap 'disgusting' welfare bill It also sets out plans to have an annual "Cabinet Takeover", where disabled people will be given a "direct platform" to speak to ministers. As she launched the review, Stewart said she was "firmly opposed" to the UK Government's approach, as she called on Labour to "follow our lead" and protect the welfare system "rather than dismantling it". "At a time when the UK Government's welfare reforms appear to be driven more by cost cutting than by compassion, and balancing the books at the expense of disabled people, let me be frank: Scotland will not, by any means, mirror that approach," she said at the launch. The Labour Government is preparing to push through its Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill, which – among other things – would change the eligibility criteria for the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) disability benefit. The UK Government's own analysis has found that the cuts would push 250,000 people into poverty, including 50,000 children. Speaking to The National, Stewart reaffirmed the Scottish Government's commitment to a welfare system based on the principles of "dignity, fairness and respect". She said: "In Scotland, we're very proud that we support the social model when it comes to addressing disabled people. "That means that we work very hard to make sure that the environment and the society that they live within – the barriers lie there, we have to limit those barriers, and that includes providing welfare support." READ MORE: BBC issues correction after Debate Night 'bias' on eve of by-election She added that the UK Government's approach "appears to be doing the opposite, by making even further hurdles and undignified and demeaning processes to put off disabled people from claiming what is actually their right". "If you look at Personal Independence Payments, for example, those are very demeaning processes," Stewart continued. "Often disabled people have long-term conditions, they shouldn't have to go through those additional and humiliating experiences to explain time and time again. "Where's the dignity in that?" Stewart said the Scottish Government was "not following that model". She said: "We believe in empowerment, we believe in supporting all of our citizens, and that includes disabled people. "The UK Government should do the same." Labour are facing anger from MPs on both sides of the benches over the cuts, with a significant number of their own MPs set to oppose them. Meanwhile, on Thursday evening, Labour MP Vicky Foxcroft resigned from her position as a Government whip over the planned cuts, which she said were not "part of the solution" to the growing welfare bill. MPs are set to debate the UK Government's welfare proposals on July 1.
The National
an hour ago
- The National
Warning for Scotland as report finds time running out to limit climate change
On Thursday, top scientists warned that the Earth could breach the 1.5C global warming limit in as little as three years. It comes as the Scottish Government published its carbon budgets plan, a replacement for net-zero targets that were not reached. Campaigners described the move as a 'weakening' of climate policy. With the new climate change plan draft due later this year and only one full parliamentary term left before the Holyrood 2026 elections, campaigners have criticised the Scottish Government's 'slowing' approach to tackling climate issues. READ MORE: SNP councillor forces Labour to take action against Israeli arms sales Rising temperatures in Scotland could have a devastating impact on communities, with increasing risks of flooding, rising sea levels and coastal erosion, or dry hot weather causing sweeping wildfires and water scarcity. Jamie Livingstone, head of Oxfam Scotland, said: 'We're going to be having the new Climate Change Plan published in draft form in autumn that will cover from 2026 through to 2040. 'The near term of that is going to be absolutely critical, which means, you know, the next Scottish Parliament will make or break Scotland's ambitions to achieve net zero by 2045. 'But we will stand no chance of delivering that unless the Climate Change plan is backed up by meaningful investment.' Livingstone (below) added that the 'richest and biggest polluters are driving the climate crisis' and should have to pay up. 'If we don't invest now, then it will cost us much more down the line to respond to that,' he said. He added: 'What people don't want in Scotland is any more hollow climate promises. We've kind of been there, we've done that, that undermines public confidence. 'Actually what we need to see is near term action, properly financed and delivered in a way that is genuinely fair. That's what people in Scotland want to see going into the Scottish elections and throughout the next parliament.' Meanwhile, Rosie Hampton, oil and gas campaigns manager at Friends of the Earth (FoE) Scotland, also argued that companies who have 'contributed vastly' to the climate crisis should be made to pay. She said: 'I think if people felt like there was a clearer sense of who's coughing up and who's actually going to save money, I think people would feel a lot more confident that measures to address the climate crisis actually can save them money and improve people's lives. READ MORE: Scottish Labour drop below Alba and Greens in Highlands by-election 'There's that kind of absence of Scottish Government and political will to say - this is who's paying for it, because this is how you've contributed. People fill in the gaps and they think, well, I'm going to have to have to pay for it. 'That's not a just transition, it's not fair, because why should ordinary people be forced to bear the brunt of it? 'It's a legitimate concern. It should be big industry, who have profited off oil and gas and things like that for a long time when communities haven't seen the benefit.' 'We need to see a serious level of ambition and a recognition of just how much needs to change,' Hampton added. Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie told The National he had concerns that the Scottish Government's 'policy response is getting weaker' while the 'pace of warming is getting more alarming'. 'It's not just about the SNP, it's about our whole political landscape,' Harvie said. He said that when the party started talks with former first minister Nicola Sturgeon, that would later lead to the Bute House Agreement, Scotland was already missing its climate targets and needed to 'accelerate'. 'That means we need to do some of the politically difficult stuff, the easy stuff's all been done,' Harvie added. (Image: PA) 'If we're not going to be politically able to do the more challenging things, that means changing the way we move about, that means changing the way we heat our homes. It means changing agriculture as well and giving rural communities a viable way forward that isn't high carbon. If we're not willing to do those things, then we fail.' The MSP added that he was 'disturbed' by the Scottish Government refusing to accept certain recommendations from the Climate Change Committee (CCC) in its carbon budget plan. The Scottish Government has been contacted for comment.
ITV News
2 hours ago
- ITV News
Assisted dying bill passed by MPs - but what does this mean for Wales?
Plans to change the law to legalise assisted dying in Wales and England have come a step closer with an historic vote in the Commons, but there remain huge questions over how it will actually affect Wales. MPs voted to pass the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill by 314 to 291. Of Wales' 32 MPs - 24 backed the bill, seven voted against and one did not vote. Health is devolved, so the implementation of any assisted dying service would be carried out through the Welsh NHS which is controlled by the Welsh Government and ultimately answerable to the Senedd itself. In a vote last October on the principle of assisted dying, Senedd members including the First Minister and Health Secretary voted against it, which means there is every chance that MSs could vote to block it. That in turn raises the prospect of assisted dying being legalised here in Wales but Welsh doctors prohibited from providing the service. An earlier attempt to give the power to decide whether or not to allow the law to be changed here in Wales to the Senedd was overturned via an amendment to the Bill. One of the MPs behind that bid, Plaid Cymru's Liz Saville Roberts, said: 'It is regrettable that the House chose to remove the Senedd's power to commence this Bill in Wales. "Health is devolved, and I firmly believe that the Senedd must take responsibility for the services available to people at the end of their lives. I am concerned that we could face a situation where assisted dying is permitted only through the private sector in Wales. 'I am also disappointed that no Welsh MP was called to speak in today's debate. Scottish and Northern Irish MPs were given the opportunity to contribute, despite the Bill not extending to those jurisdictions. 'I am nevertheless pleased that this Bill has passed its third reading. We are a step closer to granting people dying of terminal illnesses dignity at the of their lives, and the safeguards have been strengthened to protect vulnerable people.' I understand that there will be a vote on the aspects of the bill that are devolved, particularly as it affects the health service which is the means by which any assisted dying service will be provided here in Wales. It will come in the form of a Legislative Consent Motion (LCM) whereby Senedd members agree or disagree to allow UK Parliament legislation to affect Senedd law. The Health Secretary, Jeremy Miles, has already tabled an LCM although it might have to be altered now that the bill has been altered. An updated LCM has to be laid by 4th July. The Welsh Government says: 'We remain neutral on the issue of assisted dying. 'We have been working constructively with the UK Government and the Bill sponsor to ensure devolved interests are taken into account and the devolution settlement is respected.
