The Scottish Government has approved more than 235 towering pylons, wind farms and battery storage developments but only rejected eight over the last three years amid concerns rural areas are becoming “industrial jungles”.
New figures show the Energy Consents Unit has given the green light to 236 separate applications for major electricity schemes across Scotland since May 2022.
It follows widespread concerns that the Scottish Government is bypassing the concerns of communities who feel “imprisoned by pylons, wind farms and battery storage plants”.
The Energy Consents Unit is a government body that makes decisions on large-scale electricity projects which exceed 50 megawatts.
Developments have been railroaded across the Highlands the most over the past three years, with 51 applications being approved.
Dumfries and Galloway has had 30 industrial schemes given the green light, while 24 have been passed in Aberdeenshire.
Argyll and Bute, and Moray, have also seen double-digit approvals on energy projects across its countryside.
Scottish Conservative shadow energy secretary Douglas Lumsden, who has campaigned against a 70-mile pylon scheme between Kintore and Tealing in his constituency, said: “The high approval rate of applications compared to those being rejected cements my fears that areas of our countryside are being railroaded into industrial jungles.
“SNP ministers have no understanding of the magnitude of this issue and are treating our rural communities as an afterthought by not engaging with them during the planning process.
“Supporting our rural communities also means protecting our beautiful landscape and ensuring it is not damaged by new energy infrastructure.
“The SNP government has no empathy for the concerns of people living and working in rural areas who fear becoming imprisoned by pylons, wind farms and battery storage plants.
“That is why the Scottish Conservatives would guarantee local communities the final say when it comes to energy infrastructure getting the green light.”
Energy Consents Unit approval numbers between May 2022 to May 2025:
Aberdeenshire – 24
Aberdeen – 1
Angus – 5
Argyll and Bute – 19
Eilean Siar – 6
Dumfries and Galloway – 30
East Ayrshire – 7
East Dunbartonshire – 1
East Lothian – 7
Falkirk – 1
Fife – 6
Glasgow 2
Highlands – 51
Inverclyde – 2
Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park – 4
Midlothian – 0
Moray – 13
North Ayrshire – 3
North Lanarkshire – 5
Orkney – 2
Perth – 5
Renfrewshire – 4
Scottish Borders – 5
Shetland – 7
South Ayrshire – 9
South Lanarkshire – 9
Stirling – 4
