ScottishPower announces plans to repower Whitelee

Plans announced by ScottishPower Renewables (SPR) could mean Whitelee generating enough energy to power the equivalent of 650 000 homes – 300 000 more than currently – helping keep bills down long-term.

Over the 10 years of development and construction, it is estimated the project will generate £330 million of gross value added (GVA) for the Scottish economy.

In a landmark development for the energy sector, ScottishPower Renewables is committing to ensuring the community is involved in the project through potential ownership opportunities and an enlarged community benefit fund.

Whitelee has contributed £20m illion so far to East Renfrewshire, East Ayrshire, and South Lanarkshire Councils via community benefit, and the new plans will mean increased financial benefit – anticipated to be around £5 million every year.

The plans announced today are on top of ScottishPower’s record £24 billion investment plan to 2028, which is also supporting record supply chain spend – over £1 billion in 1H26 alone – with 76% in companies located in the UK.

Alongside UK contract opportunities, a multi-ports strategy for delivery of turbines and other components will mean further economic benefit Scotland-wide.

As well as the £1.5 billion investment to expand and repower the wind farm, there will also be continued investment over 40 years for the operation and maintenance of the site.

Charlie Jordan, ScottishPower Renewables Chief Executive, said: “Whitelee is one of the largest onshore wind farms in Europe and the jewel in the UK’s renewables crown, powering Greater Glasgow and beyond with clean, green power for almost two decades.

“We want to build on the existing success of our windfarms before they reach the end of their natural lifespan and we lose the benefit of their clean power capacity.

“Whitelee can set the repowering standard, unlocking the continued potential of existing infrastructure. It also means rebenefitting communities with direct financial benefit as well as a fantastic opportunity for partial community ownership.”

He added: “At this critical moment in the push for homegrown clean, green energy, it’s important we don’t go in reverse and lose the clean capacity that’s been hard earned over the last two decades as it comes to the end of its operational life.

“Retaining and increasing the output from Whitelee is good news for the UK and Scotland, good news for jobs and good news for the community and economy.”

The repowering proposals will see fewer but more modern, larger powered turbines across the site, with a reduction to 124 turbines around 250 m in height, taking capacity from 539 MW to 1 GW.

Whitelee has become a national treasure and hugely popular with the public. The habitat restoration and accessibility put in place when first built meant the former, mostly-wild, moorland has become a beloved community asset for local dog-walkers, runners, and nature lovers, as well as being a favoured educational trip destination for schools throughout Scotland.

The work is being carried out in three phases, with the aim of maintaining public access to parts of the site throughout the project, subject to health and safety requirements, and ultimately ensuring continued open access for generations to come.

A planning application is set to be submitted in December 2027, and it would be planned to be operational by 2035.

For more news and technical articles from the global renewable industry, read the latest issue of Energy Global magazine.

Energy Global’s Summer 2026 issue

The Summer issue of 2026 is out now! The new issue starts with a regional report on Latin America and the Caribbean, considering the benefits and challenges of renewable energy development in the region. The issue also covers topics such as lubricants, digitalisation, the importance of ports, battery storage technology, and more! With contributors from industry leaders including ABB, WindEurope, Sungrow, among others, this is an issue not to miss.

Read the article online at: https://www.energyglobal.com/wind/22072026/scottishpower-announces-plans-to-repower-whitelee/