Council / Land owners receive first Viking Energy rent payment
SHETLAND Islands Council (SIC) has so far earned almost £137,000 from leasing its Busta Estate to wind farm developer Viking Energy.
The figure was revealed in a recent report that was presented to a meeting of the council’s policy and resource committee.
The income of £136,713.89 to the SIC is just over half of a total payment of £267,152.18 the wind farm developer has made in 2020/21 for 18 turbines to be located on the publicly-owned 1,200-hectare Busta Estate.
The remaining £130,438.29 will be distributed to the estate’s crofting tenants depending on individual shares in common grazings.
Based on a current rate of £14,841.79 per turbine per year, Viking Energy has made payments of just over £1.5 million to the owners of the twelve estates and land holdings the 103-turbine wind farm is being built on.
Work on constructing the controversial wind farm started last summer.
Once completed, currently envisaged for September 2024, the annual base rent will be topped up with a payment depending on electricity output.
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