Spiorad na Mara £4.5 Million Community Benefit Fund

Spiorad na Mara has committed to delivering a  Community Benefit Fund of 4.5 Million pounds per year for the operational lifetime of the project. 

Spiorad na Mara has committed to delivering a  Community Benefit Fund of 4.5 Million pounds  per year (index linked) for the operational lifetime of the project.

Following around two years of discussions with the West Side Estates Group (WSEG)(1) Spiorad na Mara are now able to confirm that this Community Funding,  aimed at delivering benefits directly into communities in the west of the Isle of Lewis, will be designed through extensive consultation with members of those communities. 

An independent company will be appointed to arrange a consultation process to determine how this funding should be governed. Which type of organisations or businesses could, for example, be eligible? How would the application process be designed? Who would make decisions on applications? And crucially,  after the operational lifetime of the project (estimated at thirty-five years) how can that funding be used to develop sustainable, long-term income for the community? 

All of these questions, and more, need to be asked and discussed, but  are of course currently hypothetical. Spiorad na Mara is a  proposed offshore wind farm,  located approximately 5-13 km off the west coast of the Isle of Lewis. The close proximity of this location to the shoreline has created a division of opinions within communities in the West of Lewis, and public consultation on the design and planning stages of the projects commence this autumn. The Spiorad na Mara  Community Benefit Fund arrangements are separate from the planning process consultation, with no provisions associated with the fund either requiring support for the project or prohibiting any objections to it; the fund is however dependent upon the proposed offshore wind project becoming operational.

There has, without a doubt, been  a vast amount of work completed by both the WSEG(1) and Northland Power and ESB (2) representatives to reach this agreement. WSEG confirmed in a recent press release that they are also “committed to ensuring that extensive consultation is undertaken for the proposed community benefit fund, with opportunities given to organisations, businesses and residents across the west coast of Lewis to make their views heard. We welcome Spiorad na Mara’s similar commitment to consult. As an association of landowners closest to the proposed project, West Side Estate Group foresaw the need for proactive engagement with this developer. This collective approach has presented a strong, united front to have challenging discussions with the developer when necessary and deliver maximum returns for the communities affected by Spiorad na Mara if the project proceeds. The Group members’ familiarity with commercial negotiations and all aspects of everyday estate management, as well as experience of renewable energy development, has proved to be a powerful combination in the lengthy discussions with Northland Power and ESB.” 

Tanya Davies, Project Director of Spiorad na Mara,  commented: “We are very grateful to the WSEG for their shared commitment and determination in reaching this stage and helping to ensure that communities on the west coast of the island stand to benefit meaningfully from hosting the proposed project. Now that we have reached this stage, we look forward to working closely with local communities and stakeholders to ensure that local voices are at the heart of shaping and overseeing the responsible management and distribution of the benefits.”

Commitment to negotiations, discussions or attendance at meetings does not, of course, pre-determine anyone’s opinion on the proposed development — something that became all too apparent at a recent Community Council Meeting (to be reported in more detail in this week’s fios #663).  The WSEG also stresses it has not taken any view on supporting the project, but has had a clear objective to secure a commitment of this type from the developer as early as possible in the project timeline. If, and it is still a big if, the Spiorad na Mara project reaches the operational phase (scheduled for 2031 with an estimated operational lifespan of approximately thirty-five years) this proactive approach has ensured an enviable  level of financial investment into the community  — one that we can all provide our opinion on and one that will set a precedent for offshore wind developments.

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(1) The West Side Estate Group comprises Urras Oighreachd Ghabhsainn (Galson Estate), Urras Oighreachd Bharabhais (Barvas Estate), Lewis Island Crofters (Dalmore Estate) and Urras Oighreachd Chàrlabhaigh (Carloway Estate).

(2)Spiorad na Mara is owned by Northland Power (75.5%) and ESB (24.5%), with Northland leading on the development, construction, and operation.

(3) The featured image in this article is not representative of the design or scale of the proposed off shore wind farm Spiorad na Mara — it features an offshore wind farm in Denmark and is being used for illustrative purposes only.

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