Trump golf course back on track after wind farm moved

Mark Macaskill
DONALD Trump, the American billionaire, has forced the relocation of a wind farm that he claimed would blight his planned golf course in Aberdeenshire.

The property tycoon had threatened to abandon his £300m luxury development unless the proposed wind farm in Aberdeen Bay was moved elsewhere.

Now, following talks with Trump, energy companies have agreed to shelve their plan to erect 33 turbines in the North Sea between Aberdeen and Newburgh.

Amec, one of the firms behind the project, said the £40m wind farm will now consist of 23 turbines clustered off Aberdeen’s coastline. The nearest will be more than three miles from Trump’s course.

Trump is understood to have approved an artist’s impression of the view from the clubhouse at the course. The 490ft turbines are barely visible in the drawing.

“The nearest turbine to the Trump hotel will now be more than three miles away,” said Iain Todd, an adviser to Amec and spokesman for the Aberdeen Renewable Energy Group (AREG), a private-public partnership. “We have given them the drawings showing what the view will look like from there. The changes mean the visual impact will be much less. I’m happy that we are moving to a position where the two projects can exist together.”

Earlier this year, Trump said: “When I stand on the 18th hole of Trump International Golf Links, Scotland, I want to see the ocean. I do not want to see windmills.”

Shiona Baird, Green MSP for North East, wrote to the billionaire asking him to withdraw criticism of the wind farm amid fears the project would be scrapped.

However, the decision to relocate the wind farm means Trump has overcome a major obstacle in his plan to build a 800-acre championship links course at the Menie Estate, north of Aberdeen.

The new wind farm proposals will be unveiled this week by Amec and AREG at an energy conference in Aberdeen.

Last month, Trump jetted in to Aberdeen to discuss his planning application, to be submitted shortly. The property developer, whose mother was born on Stornoway in the Western Isles, announced plans for a five-star resort in Aberdeenshire in March. It will comprise two championship courses, a golf academy, a luxury hotel and holiday apartments.

It is expected to bring £150m to the Scottish economy and generate thousands of jobs in its construction. Work is scheduled to begin in September, with an official opening in spring 2008.

However, local residents fear it could impact on a site of special scientific interest designated for its rare plants and mosses. They also claim it will cause irreparable damage to the area. Also of concern is the effect of chemicals used on golf courses that can pollute water courses.

Last night the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds Scotland welcomed the decision to relocate the wind farm but warned it could still threaten bird populations.

A spokesman for Trump said: “Mr Trump has always made it clear that he does not wish to see wind turbines from the resort.”