Dumfries and Galloway
Dumfries and Galloway was paid £11m last year to switch off its wind farms, because the wires south were full. That would cover every local household's electricity for 132 days. A further 560 MW of approved clean power (almost all onshore wind) is still waiting to be built here: enough to supply a year's electricity to 488,000 homes. A 40 MW battery approved at Kellwood Road in 2025 would store power that is currently wasted; it has not been built.
The waiting list
Every approved, unbuilt project
| Site | Technology | Enough for | Capacity | Approved | Waiting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Windy Standard III Wind Farm (Brockloch Rig Phase 2)Near New Cummock | Wind Onshore | 77,000 homes | 87.6 MW | 2021-03 | 5.4 yrs |
| Stranoch 2New Luce, Newton Stewart | Wind Onshore | 73,000 homes | 84.0 MW | 2021-11 | 4.7 yrs |
| Shepherd's Rig Wind FarmShepherds Rig Windfarm 5KM E/O, Carsphairn, Castle Douglas, Dumfries and Galloway | Wind Onshore | 71,000 homes | 81.0 MW | 2023-08 | 2.9 yrs |
| Troston LochTroston Loch Wind Farm, New Abbey, West Of Moniaive, Dumfries, Dumfries and Galloway | Wind Onshore | 59,000 homes | 67.2 MW | 2020-12 | 5.6 yrs |
| Kilgallioch Windfarm (Extension)High Eldrig, land 12 km NW of Kirkcowan, SE of Kilgallioch Windfarm | Wind Onshore | 44,000 homes | 50.4 MW | 2021-12 | 4.6 yrs |
| Margree WindfarmMargree Near Holmhead St John's Town Of Dalry Castle, Douglas | Wind Onshore | 44,000 homes | 49.9 MW | 2022-03 | 4.4 yrs |
| Fell Wind FarmFell Wind Farm, Moniaive, Thornhill, Dumfries and Galloway | Wind Onshore | 43,000 homes | 49.0 MW | 2021-11 | 4.8 yrs |
| Cornharrow Wind FarmCornharrow Wind Farm, Land At Cornharrow, Dalry, Castle Douglas | Wind Onshore | 34,000 homes | 38.4 MW | 2022-03 | 4.4 yrs |
| Glenshimmeroch Wind FarmLand At Glenshimmeroch Hill, St. John's Town of Dalry, Dalry, Castle Douglas | Wind Onshore | 31,000 homes | 36.0 MW | 2019-09 | 6.9 yrs |
| Barlockhart Moor Wind TurbinesBarlockhart Moor Glenluce | Wind Onshore | 7,300 homes | 8.4 MW | 2022-02 | 4.5 yrs |
| Torrs Hill10km NW of New Galloway | Wind Onshore | 3,500 homes | 4.0 MW | 2004-03 | 22.4 yrs |
| Glenhead Of Aldouran - Solar Array & Water Source Heat Pump SystemGlenhead Of Aldouran Leswalt Stranraer | Solar Photovoltaics | 400 homes | 1.0 MW | 2021-04 | 5.3 yrs |
| Tesco Extra DumfriesTesco Extra Cuckoo Bridge Reta, Glasgow Road, Dumfries, Dumfries and Galloway | Solar Photovoltaics | 300 homes | 0.8 MW | 2023-07 | 3.1 yrs |
| Plascow Farm - Solar ArrayPlascow Farm Kirkgunzeon | Solar Photovoltaics | 200 homes | 0.5 MW | 2024-02 | 2.5 yrs |
| Sandmill, Sandhead - Solar PanelsOpposite Sands Of Luce Holiday Park Sandmill Sandhead | Solar Photovoltaics | 200 homes | 0.5 MW | 2022-12 | 3.6 yrs |
| Knocknain Farm, Leswalt - Wind TurbineKnocknain Farm, Leswalt, Stranraer | Wind Onshore | 300 homes | 0.3 MW | 2023-09 | 2.9 yrs |
| Lochside Of Fell, Crocketford - Solar ArrayLochside Of Fell Crocketford Dumfries | Solar Photovoltaics | 100 homes | 0.3 MW | 2023-09 | 2.9 yrs |
| Glaick Farm, Leswalt - Wind TurbineGlaick Farm, Leswalt, Stranraer | Wind Onshore | 200 homes | 0.2 MW | 2023-05 | 3.2 yrs |
| Unit 4, Industrial Site - Solar PanelsJas P Wilson Coast Road | Solar Photovoltaics | 100 homes | 0.2 MW | 2024-02 | 2.4 yrs |
| Barwhillanty House, Barwhillanty Estate - Solar Array0.2km Ne/O Barwhillanty House, Barwhillanty Estate, Parton, Castle Douglas | Solar Photovoltaics | 100 homes | 0.2 MW | 2024-02 | 2.5 yrs |
| Kellwood Road - Solar PanelsUnit 1 Kellwood Road | Solar Photovoltaics | 100 homes | 0.2 MW | 2023-01 | 3.6 yrs |
| Plascow Wind TurbinePlascow | Wind Onshore | — | — MW | 2021-11 | 4.7 yrs |
| Manquhill, Carsphairn - Wind FarmManquhill 10.5km East Of Carsphairn | Wind Onshore | — | — MW | 2024-07 | 2.1 yrs |
| Divot Hill Wind FarmMargree Area, 7km To The Ne/O St Johns Town Of Dalry, Castle Douglas | Wind Onshore | — | — MW | 2024-07 | 2.1 yrs |
Plus 9 more approved within the last two years.
Batteries
| Site | Size | Status | While discharging |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quantans Hill Wind Farm | 50 MW | in planning | could supply ≈175,000 homes |
| Kellwood Road - Battery Storage | 40 MW | approved, not built 2025 | could supply ≈140,000 homes |
| Troston Loch Wind Farm | 20 MW | approved, not built 2020 | could supply ≈70,000 homes |
| Stranoch 2 | 20 MW | being built 2021 | could supply ≈70,000 homes |
| Lairdmannoch Energy Park | 20 MW | in planning | could supply ≈70,000 homes |
| High Mark Wind Farm - Wind Turbines | 15 MW | in planning | could supply ≈53,000 homes |
| Little Drum Solar Farm - Solar Park & Battery Storage | 12 MW | approved, not built 2025 | could supply ≈42,000 homes |
| Larbrax Wind Farm | 10 MW | in planning | could supply ≈35,000 homes |
Wind farms paid to switch off
| Site | Paid, 12 months | Energy lost | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kilgallioch wind farm | £6.5m | a year of 33,000 homes' electricity | high |
| Brochloch Rig (formerly Windy Standard II) | £2.2m | a year of 11,000 homes' electricity | medium |
| Windy Rig Wind Farm | £1.6m | a year of 21,000 homes' electricity | high |
| Glen App | £430k | a year of 2,200 homes' electricity | high |
| Benbrack Wind Farm | £300k | a year of 16,000 homes' electricity | high |
| Blackcraig | £28k | a year of 100 homes' electricity | high |
What this page does not show
The switch-off figure covers the big wind farms on the national grid only; smaller farms on the local grid are switched off invisibly, so it is a floor. Offshore wind is counted nationally, never per seat. The planning database can run a quarter behind reality.
Electricity does not travel from a particular project to particular houses. Everything generated goes into the national grid and everyone draws from that shared pool, so "enough for X homes" is a way of sizing the electricity — not a claim that these homes would be powered by this site. Battery storage is counted separately from generation: it moves power in time rather than making it.
Planning statuses come from the government's planning database (REPD), which records what was decided and when, but not why. Where a project was refused we say so and name the authority; for the reasons, look up the planning reference on that council's own register. How to check any figure on this page →
What has John Cooper said about the grid in Parliament? Search Hansard →