Some of the most meaningful benefits that can be delivered from a wind farm proposal like Kinnelhead are jobs and employment for local businesses and contractors, in addition to the use of local services and amenities, all of which can generate a significant amount of inward investment within the area.
Have your say on community benefits
Please share your ideas for local benefits and priority projects that you would like to see supported or delivered in your community, if the proposed Kinnelhead Wind Farm receives planning consent.
Click here to complete our Community Benefit Feedback form.
Generating enough clean, green electricity to power the equivalent of approximately 225,000 homes annually.1
Predicted to deliver around £7.1 million inward investment in the form of jobs, employment and the use of local services during the development, construction, and first year of operation.
An expected £7.2 million of economic activity linked to operations and maintenance work.2
Up to £91.1 million in businesses rates to Dumfries and Galloway Council supporting vital local services.3
Provide a community benefit package worth over £42.7 million over the wind farm's 50-year lifetime.
Potential to deliver an annual discount on the electricity bills of properties closest to the wind farm
Tailored community benefit package
RES is proposing a tailored package of benefits for the community from the Kinnelhead Wind Farm that would be worth £5,000 per megawatt (or equivalent) of installed capacity per annum, which works out at over £42.7 million (or equivalent) over the 50-year operational lifetime of the project.
This package could include RES’ innovative Local Electricity Discount Scheme (LEDS) - please see across for more information on LEDS.
Should the project receive consent, the area of benefit for Kinnelhead Wind Farm will be determined in consultation with locally elected representatives from the closest communities.
Local Electricity Discount Scheme
Our unique Local Electricity Discount Scheme (LEDS) seeks to deliver direct and tangible benefits to people living and working closest to RES’ operational wind farms. Developed in response to research and feedback from local communities around RES' operational wind farms, LEDS offers an annual discount to the electricity bills of those properties closest to a participating wind farm.
The scheme would be open to all residential, business and community buildings with an electricity meter (including schools, places of worship and village halls) within the eligible area.
If LEDS is something that you are interested in as a potential part of a tailored community benefits package at Kinnelhead Wind Farm, or if you would like more information, please let us know.
Sponsorships
University of Glasgow - Dumfries Campus
In March 2026, RES announced their recent teaming up with the University of Glasgow to offer a newly established course which will introduce pupils to the world of professional environmental science, via hands-on outdoor learning.
19 S3 students from across Dumfries and Galloway will have the opportunity to take part in the this fully funded residential field course in the summer.
‘EnviroLab Summer Experience: Careers for the Future’ takes place this July at the Scottish Centre for Ecology and the Natural Environment (SCENE). Funded by RES, the course will be delivered by the University of Glasgow, Crichton University Campus in Dumfries. For more information click here.
Jim Cameron, Senior Development Project Manager at RES said:
“We’re delighted to partner with the University of Glasgow’s Dumfries Campus to support this inspiring initiative designed for high school students across the region. With Scotland’s booming renewable energy industry offering countless career opportunities, I’m positive that this experience will also get these young people thinking about the various ways they can train, work and thrive within Dumfries and Galloway itself.
This builds upon RES’ proud history in Scotland of maximising skills development and investment in the local economy – such as our Bloch Wind Farm proposal which, if consented, would see £8.5 million invested and 76 job years created in Dumfries and Galloway, during construction alone.”
Upper Annandale Football Club
RES is proud to support the Upper Annandale Football Club Juniors through the purchase of new goals for the 9 v 9 games for Primary 6 and 7 age groups. With these goals, they are able to continue to host competitive Scottish Youth Football Association (SYFA) games and have the correct size of equipment for training and developing their footballing ability as a team.
Upper Annandale Juniors Football Club is a voluntary run youth football club based in Moffat for the town and the surrounding area. It is one of the few sporting clubs for children in the rural area and runs weekly training sessions, as well as weekend games and fixtures.
We will be cheering the Junior teams on and hope that the sponsorship will support in making a positive contribution to a valued local club.
Proud Supporters of the Scottish Cross-Country (SXC) Championships
RES are thrilled to have sponsored the SXC Mountain Bike Series, a premier event series celebrating endurance, skill, and community in off-road cycling. The SXC Championships bring together riders of all ages, genders, and abilities - from Under 8s to Super Vets - competing across Scotland’s top trails. Spanning five rounds from March to August 2025, the series provides riders the chance to take to the trails across Scotland, from Cathkin Braes near RES’s Glasgow office, to trail centres near our project sites including the Tarland Trails in Aberdeenshire, Glentress in Peebles and the Forest of Ae in Dumfries and Galloway. Run almost entirely by dedicated volunteers, who are also organising a British Series round at Kirroughtree, the SXC embodies the passion of the cycling community, fostering future Scottish and UK champions who go to compete on the world stage.
Our sponsorship reflects our commitment to promoting grassroots and community-led projects, funding the volunteer programme, youth development events, women’s participation, and, of course, the all-important medals. As a Power for Good, RES is proud to be able to support this series of events and the dedicated SXC volunteers.
1 The homes figure has been calculated by taking the predicted annual electricity generation of the site (based on RES assessments Kinnelhead has a predicted capacity factor of 48.7%) and dividing this by the annual average electricity figures from DESNZ (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero) showing that the annual UK average domestic household consumption is 3,239 kWh (Jan 2024)
2 Expenditure in the local economy during the development, construction and operation of wind farms varies from project to project due to various factors including project size, project duration, and the availability of local suppliers. In recent years, RES has seen typical spend with local stakeholders, suppliers and service providers in the region of £279,000 per wind turbine during the development, construction and first year of project operation. In some cases, it has been possible to significantly improve on this number.
3 The business rates figure of £1.8m has been calculated from the most recent non-domestic rates revaluation in Scotland (2023 valuation) and predicted performance of the wind farm
