‘We were offered more than double the value of our home to turn our land into a wind farm’

It was in 2020 when Nigel Dodman and Sandy Boulanger first received a letter through their door telling them of the plans for 31 220m-high wind turbines on land a few hundred yards from their home near New Radnor in the Radnorshire hills. Mr Dodman immediately began looking into the plans at what is being referred to as the Nant Mithil Energy Park and realised 10 of the 31 turbines would “shake” their home on their large plot of land which neighbours Radnor Forest.

Mr Dodman claims when he arrived at a meeting with proposed developer Bute Energy later they told him no-one would be materially affected by the planned turbines as no-one lived close enough to the site. He claims he then realised the company didn’t actually know he lived there and proceeded to offer him a huge compensation sum in exchange for his home and his silence.

“At that time we were told by the managing director at Bute that we would not see or hear the turbines,” Mr Dodman, who has lived in the idyllic rural spot for more than 20 years, says. “In reality they’ll shake our home. He changed his mind when he realised where we lived. I’m confident in saying Bute didn’t actually know there was a property here before we notified them.”

Mr Dodman claims the company then offered a significant sum of money to him and his family – more than double the value of their property and land – to buy it from him on the condition he signed a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) preventing him from discussing matters surrounding Bute Energy’s plans in future. “It was more than double the value of the property and land as well as £10,000 a year each year until they got full planning permission,” he recalled.

“In return we’d sign an NDA. We thought hard about it. In the end I just couldn’t live with myself if we were bought out. We’ve got a little paradise here. It’s a small organic farm in beautiful surroundings which we’ve made our home for 25 years. I expect to be carried out of here in a box. No-one could take that away or replace what we have.”

Locals claim the area is not close to suitable for large-scale energy development. At Nant Mithil 23 of the 31 turbines would lie outside the area predetermined by the Welsh Government to be suitable for large-scale wind energy production in its documentation of pre-assessed areas in its Future Wales 2040 plan. “You can see the Radnor Forest from a long way away,” Mr Dodman says. “You can see it from the Brecon Beacons, Shropshire, the Cambrian Mountains. It’s a beautiful part of the landscape which should be protected. So, no, we didn’t take the money and we’re going to fight these plans all the way.”

He alleges: “The plans are nonsense and I think they’ll be unmasked as nonsense. Why would you ruin a landscape dependent on farming and tourism which people come here to enjoy in order to send power to England? Because that’s what all this is about. The motivation for the planning of these energy parks is entirely financial. Money is made when the developer gets planning permission and then they sell the project on to a multinational company to do it. Wales has been seen as an easy target by companies with councils in a right mess and unable to challenge these plans.”

The plans Nigel speaks about are not just at Nant Mithil. Within 17 square miles in Radnorshire Bute Energy is planning 65 other turbines. A few miles down the road there are plans for up to 16 turbines at Bryn Gilwern Energy Park north of the village Hundred House. A couple of miles south of that there are plans for another 18 turbines at what would be Aberedw Energy Park which would neighbour Builth Wells. Bute Energy is behind all three of those as well as 13 others across mid Wales. Further wind farms are planned by RES, EDF, Statkraft, Pennant Walters, RWE Renewables, Vattenfall, Galileo, Muirhall Energy, Coriolis Energy, Cenin, and Bryngygda Wind Farm Ltd. Plans for energy parks are growing at such a speed in rural Wales that campaign groups like the Campaign for Protection of Rural Wales (CPRW) have stopped publishing updated maps regularly because, as campaign trustee Dr Jonathan Dean puts it, “it’s almost pointless committing it to paper now”. You can see an interactive map showing planned renewable energy parks here.

Ed Miliband, UK Government secretary of state for energy security and net zero, wants to create energy parks across the UK at a high rate over the next six years, doubling onshore wind and tripling solar energy. The UK Government says it will enable the UK to reach its net zero target faster and more cheaply and will eventually make energy bills lower by easing Britain’s reliance on the international market. What is happening across mid Wales is a sign of what’s to come for many living in rural Britain.

Initially interest around the turbines and challenging them was generally limited to campaigners and people like Mr Dodman who knew they’d be directly affected by turbines but that’s since changed as the planned picture has become clearer. Four miles away from Mr Dodman’s home is a dormant energy park called Hendy Wind Farm where seven wind turbines 110m in height haven’t turned in five years because they can’t be connected to the national grid. Campaigners fought hard to oppose the turbines at Hendy for years before the Welsh Government ignored professional advice to refuse Hendy and approved it with a lot of conditions. One of the conditions was that the turbines would be taken down if they didn’t turn within six months – but years later the turbines still stand. “These plans always leave an awful lot to planning conditions,” says Christine Hugh-Jones of CPRW. “They say: ‘You can do this but only on the basis you abide by these conditions.’ Well look what happened to Hendy. They had loads of conditions and they weren’t properly enforced.”

Mr Dodman had always felt Hendy would go wrong, having lived off grid himself in the area for two decades. “Hendy is built in a valley in one of the most beautiful landscapes in Wales and there is no grid connection to this part of the country,” he says. “They justified it on the grounds of saving the planet and yet it’s never turned because it was never in the right place and now it’s just a complete eyesore that offers nothing.”

Mr Dodman and Ms Boulanger know more than most about the unpredictability of wind energy. They have a wind turbine in their own garden which they claim they can’t hear because it’s a small farm turbine. They have it, they say, because they’re off grid. But they rely on a back-up generator because the turbine is so unreliable – particularly in the winter when they need the energy the most. “Wind turbines only produce a fraction of their capacity,” Mr Dodman says. “For wind energy it’s less than 26% I believe.”

Developers have vowed to learn from Hendy. Bute Energy’s subsidiary company GreenGen Cymru, which says it will unlock Wales’ green energy potential, plans two pylon highways to Carmarthen to connect all of the proposed wind farms. Farmers and landowners have received letters informing them their land would be used for pylons which would travel 60 miles from mid Wales to a substation in Carmarthen connecting the planned wind farms to the national grid.

One of the pylon highways named the Towy Usk route would run from Nant Mithil to Llandyfaelog going through Aberedw Hill, Llangammach Wells, Llandovery, Llandeilo, and Llandyfaelog. The other named the Towy Teifi route would run from Lan Fawr to Lampeter through Llanllwni, Alltwalis, Rhydargeau, and Llandyfaelog. The plan is for it to go for planning approval in 2026 with the earliest a decision could be made being that year. Construction would commence the following year with the scheme operational in 2028. Both schemes have to be decided by Planning and Environment Decisions Wales (PEDW).

While some have said they will take huge amounts of money to have the pylons and turbines on their land many more are angry. Drive through the villages in rural mid Wales and you’ll see many landowners have erected signs telling Bute Energy and GreenGen Cymru to stay off their land. Some have received legal letters informing them that under law they are compelled to allow access to their land for surveys to be carried out for pylons.

After we tracked down one farmer who had erected some of the signs in their village they said they didn’t want to speak to the press because the situation was volatile and they needed to maintain relationships with neighbouring farmers who’d agreed to sell their land for pylons. Locals say there are hundreds of landowners who are vehemently resistant to the idea of allowing access to their land for pylons.

Susan Williams, who has lived at Hundred House for more than a decade, says: “I can’t see how as a local person I will materially benefit from these plans. If it was benefiting our area I wouldn’t be so against it. But this is people elsewhere thinking: ‘Not in my back yard but we can do it in theirs.’ Sometimes I do feel as if rural people do not matter. The problem around here is the pylons really. If they put them underground I think people wouldn’t mind but to be putting all these pylons in people’s land and forcing them to accept it seems shocking to me. A lot of people now have signs up on their gates saying: ‘No entry’. This could end really badly. People will not put up with it. It’s as if there’s no respect for the people who live here and have farmed the land for years. I very much doubt we’ll get cheaper electricity at the end of it.”

GreenGen says: “Our investigations show that underground cables require more land and create more ground disturbance during construction. This could also lead to longer-term ecological and environmental impacts. Using pylons will allow us to provide a new connection quickly with minimal disruption to the land allowing us to fight back against climate change as soon as we can.”

The company said it is “working with industry experts” to get an accurate cost of delivering the project underground but they say they believe overhead lines are “the most viable and cost-effective option at this stage for delivering a connection quickly”. The company does say that it will assess if any parts of the connection need to be placed underground “for example in highly constrained or particularly sensitive areas”. The Welsh Government’s position is that new power lines should, where possible, be put underground but “that a balanced view must be taken against costs which could render otherwise acceptable projects unviable”.

Bute Energy says it will donate 50% more than the industry average on things that will benefit the community in the Radnorshire hills as a de facto compensation for the inconvenience but campaigners have said that doesn’t go far enough. On the strength of feeling across the region Ms Hugh-Jones says: “It’s very divisive because a lot of people stand to make a lot of money and on the other hand there’s a lot of local unhappiness about it all. But there are other ways things like this divide communities too such as the promises of community benefits for people affected by it all. In reality what happens is Bute will choose projects like a children’s playground or a rugby pitch or something like that so only the people who use those things get something back. Surely if you have a wind farm and it’s making money since it’s producing electricity you ought to decrease the bills of the people suffering from it and since you’re trashing the environment you should pay for environmental restoration elsewhere.”

Jenny Chryss, of fellow campaign group ReThink, says: “Now, as developments are beginning to get traction, what’s coming is becoming ingrained in people’s minds. I think people are beginning to realise exactly what could be coming down the road. Some people of course have signed up to have turbines and pylons on their land and I’d assume they’re happy. Some don’t care. A lot of people and particularly those living near the developments proposed or the infrastructure are extremely fearful for their livelihoods.

“Yes, compared to a lot of areas across the UK this area is sparsely populated. But that shouldn’t mean: ‘We’ll just dump this here because there aren’t many of you.’ These villages are vibrant communities. This isn’t a wasteland. They are thriving communities with agriculture and tourism at their hearts and this is going to decimate them. People here are more or less going to be surrounded by wind farms at a size never demonstrated in the UK before. Understandably people living next to these things are very fearful for their futures.”

The turbines proposed across Wales are not like those previously seen. The construction of Nant Mithil, expected to be completed in 2029 if plans are approved by the Welsh Government, includes 31 turbines more than 200m in height, which Bute Energy says “reflects changes in technology over recent years”. The foundations of the turbines will be five metres deep and 25m wide. Up to 59,000 cubic metres of concrete will be used at the site. The company says it will make every effort to restore the land after use.

Campaigners argue wind energy is not needed at such a large scale and could be done more efficiently offshore. Ms Hugh-Jones says: “It’s not just the wind farms – it’s the roads infrastructure and what it would do to the whole area. To me there’s no point trashing your natural environment to get more energy if there are better places to put these turbines.

“I care what this will do to a very special swathe of mid Wales. It’s a relatively traditional and unchanged area of Wales and I feel this is being exploited and is not going to be good for the communities nor the landscape. Bute Energy has taken a look at Wales and have seen a hole in the market. They’ve spotted Wales as a prime money-making spot.”

“Wales is in a nature emergency as well as a climate emergency,” Ms Chryss says. “I am not at all convinced enough is being done with these projects to protect nature and ecology at the expense of building these energy parks. Of course what you see when you look at a turbine some people might say looks okay and that’s subjective but what I certainly didn’t know until I got involved in all of this is under every turbine are thousands of tonnes of concrete. It’s also well-recorded wind turbines kill birds and bats.

“I think the major issue with all of this is the scale of it all really. It’s the size of the proposals and how many of them there are. People are already starting to talk about Wales becoming the power station of England. Awareness of how this all works is growing. Wales doesn’t need all the renewable energy produced here if all of these wind farms happen – it’ll make its way off to the grid and it’ll be exported out of Wales. That adds to the feeling of Wales being used as a power station.

“The development phases would be at least as much concern for local people. It will be years and years of disruption to local people, never mind what the finished product looks like. We are not saying there isn’t a climate emergency and we’re not saying don’t build wind farms. We’re saying simply carpeting mid Wales with pylons and turbines is not the way forward.”

A spokesperson for Bute Energy said: “We recognise the depth of feeling on the big questions that come with the climate emergency and the need to create a sustainable world for future generations. We also recognise the significant change our move to clean power represents for communities across Wales and the UK – including in mid Wales. Our belief is that we must act now to protect our environment and support vibrant, thriving communities.

“We have spent the past two years engaging with host communities for our energy parks, answering questions and actively ensuring that we take on board community views while delivering a greener future for Wales. Meaningful and ongoing engagement with communities on the design of our energy parks is a key part of our approach. At Nant Mithil we reduced the number and maximum height of the turbines and shifted the project’s footprint away from people’s homes in response to the local feedback.

“Nant Mithil will generate up to 205 MW of clean energy. That’s enough to power up to 202,000 homes and displace up to 300,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually. Our full £3bn portfolio is approximately 10 times that size and will meet around 25% of Wales’ expected electricity needs by 2035.

“Our communities also help design and deliver our community benefit fund that could be worth up to £20m every year – the largest offered by any developer in Wales. We work with charities, schools, and other local organisations to ensure our investment remains in Wales and delivers a legacy of green skills, good jobs, and funding for projects that genuinely matter to local people. At Nant Mithil that fund is worth £1.5m a year.” The company did not directly address Mr Dodman’s claims around the financial offer he says was made nor the request for an NDA.

A statement from GreenGen Cymru reads: “Tackling the climate emergency, connecting new community and renewable energy projects, creating and expanding businesses, and electrifying our heating and transport systems will all require more grid capacity. These are challenge that Wales faces – ones that need to be tackled urgently and ones that we are trying to help address.

“Whether it is undergrounding cables, wood poles, or lattice towers, across our projects all suitable technology options are being considered, reviewed, and utilised and typically a network will involve a combination of technologies. Throughout Wales and the wider UK electricity connections are a tried and tested technology that have been operating safely within communities for decades. This includes areas popular with tourism and on agricultural land.

“Towy Teifi and Towy Usk, along with all our projects, are currently going through consultation phases where we are asking for feedback on our proposals. As is standard across the industry changes are made between these stages. For example, thanks to feedback and further environmental and technical assessments, numerous changes were made on Towy Usk. This includes a 5.5km of underground section near Llanarthne and the rerouting of the project to better avoid tourism businesses near Builth Wells.

“Our second round of consultation on our Towy Teifi project will launch in the spring where we will be able to share updated proposals and where we will once again be asking for detailed feedback. In terms of agriculture, if approved, the towers we would propose to use on our 132kv overhead line are around half the size of the transmission pylons already seen in places like Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire along the M4. There is no evidence that overhead lines and pylons have a materially adverse impact on livestock or grazing behavior which can continue up to and within the footings of the pylons.

“The footprint of the pylons currently proposed for the Towy Teifi connection will be modest. Except in the footprint of the pylon it is anticipated the normal farming practice will be able to continue under the overhead lines. Detailed consideration of pylon siting and overhead line alignment during the design and environmental impact assessment (EIA) process will seek to reduce the loss of agricultural land and disruption of agricultural activities to the extent feasible. We will work closely with farmers and landowners in developing the project to understand their concerns and to reduce any effects on their operation of their land as much as possible.

“GreenGen Cymru’s overwhelming preference is to seek voluntary engagements with landowners and as such we and our external land agents have been actively engaged in negotiating voluntary agreements with landowners on the Towy Teifi project since January 2024. Unfortunately we have been unable to reach voluntary agreements with all landowners and some as a result have recently received statutory notice under section 172 of the Housing & Planning Act.

“All landowners have been offered and continue to be offered in person meeting with members of the GGC team and our external land agents. It is always stressed that agreeing to surveys in no way restricts landowners’ ability to respond to project consultations or express their views on our proposals.”

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