Solar, wind and battery projects near Kirkwall (KW15)
6 solar, wind or battery projects of 150 kW or more are recorded within 10 km of the centre of KW15 (Orkney Islands): 3 approved but not yet running, 2 operational. The largest live scheme is Orkney’s Community Wind Farm Project - Qanterness (28.8 MW wind farm, approved on 21 December 2021, not yet built), 4.3 km away. Source: Renewable Energy Planning Database, July 2026 extract.
Projects within 10 km of KW15
Projects of 1 MW and more (4)
| Project | Type | MW | Status (REPD) | Submitted | Decision | Record updated | Council | km |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orkney Storage Park Projectbattery storage | battery storage | 2 | operationalupdated Oct 2018 | — | — | Oct 2018 | Orkney Islands | 0.5 |
| Work Farm, Work Roadwind farm | wind farm | 1.8 | application withdrawnupdated Feb 2024 | May 2023 | — | Feb 2024 | Orkney Islands | 2.3 |
| Orkney’s Community Wind Farm Project - Qanternesswind farm | wind farm | 28.8 | approved, not builtupdated Oct 2022 | Feb 2020 | granted Dec 2021 | Oct 2022 | Orkney Islands | 4.3 |
| New Hollandwind farm | wind farm | 1 | operationalupdated Jan 2015 | Jul 2013 | granted Nov 2013 | Jan 2015 | Orkney Islands | 9.1 |
Smaller schemes under 1 MW, mostly rooftop solar (2)
| Project | Type | MW | Status (REPD) | Submitted | Decision | Record updated | Council | km |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harbour Authority Building, St Olawind farm | wind farm | — | approved, not builtupdated Mar 2025 | Oct 2024 | granted Feb 2025 | Mar 2025 | Orkney Islands | 2.1 |
| New Holland, Stratheast Road -Wind Turbinewind turbine | wind turbine | 0.5 | approved, not builtupdated Mar 2025 | Sep 2024 | granted Feb 2025 | Mar 2025 | Orkney Islands | 8.0 |
Distance from the average position of the KW15 postcodes, not from your home. Projects of 5 MW and more have their own page with dates and planning history.
By type
| Type | All | Pending | Approved | Operational | Refused | MW in pipeline |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wind farm | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 28.8 |
| Wind turbine | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 |
| Battery storage | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
MW in pipeline: pending, approved and under-construction capacity.
How Orkney Islands decides solar, wind and battery applications
| Applications | Orkney Islands | UK |
|---|---|---|
| Decided applications (solar, wind, battery) | 29 | 10,236 |
| Refused | 5 (17%) | 19% |
| Onshore wind refused | 5 of 29 | 45% |
| Median time from submission to decision | 26.9 weeks | 17.0 weeks |
| Appeals lodged / allowed | 2 / 2 | — |
All projects in Orkney Islands
Is the status up to date?
32% of applications still shown as pending in REPD were submitted more than two years ago, and only 37% of pending records were updated in the last 12 months, so some of them may already have been decided. Check the council's planning register for the latest decision.