Whitelee Wind Farm

Whitelee Wind Farm stands on Eaglesham moor in Scotland, mostly in East Ayrshire. It is the largest on-shore wind farm in the United Kingdom, with 215 turbines built by Siemens and Alstom. The turbines have an average capacity of 2.5 megawatts each, giving a total of 539 megawatts. ScottishPower Renewables, part of Iberdrola, operates the farm. The site sits 300 metres above sea level, 15 kilometres outside Glasgow. The wind farm helps meet Scottish renewable energy targets. In 2009, First Minister Alex Salmond opened the visitor centre. On one record-breaking day in 2018, the farm produced 6 gigawatt-hours of electricity. Its 539 megawatts can power over 350,000 homes each year. The BBC’s Weather World programme has featured the site during extreme weather. Visitors find a modern visitor centre with an exhibition room, café and shop. Over 130 kilometres of paths allow cycling, walking and horse riding. A mountain bike course opened in 2014, designed by Phil Saxena, who also worked on Olympic and Commonwealth Games courses. The site hosts an annual running event called Run the Blades, with distances from 10K to 50K. Lochgoin Farm within the wind farm was once a refuge for Covenanters, and a stone obelisk nearby honours John Howie, author of the Scots Worthies.