Ferosca Wind requests public interest status for Llodio wind farm from Basque Government

The company seeks new avenues to advance the project, bypassing municipal regulations.

Wind turbines on a green hillside in Euskadi.
IA

Wind turbines on a green hillside in Euskadi.

The company Ferosca Wind has requested that the Basque Government declare the Ferosca I wind farm, planned for the mountains of Llodio, as being of public interest.

This designation would allow the project to bypass the regulations of the Llodio City Council. Originally, the Provincial Council of Álava had taken charge of the wind farm's Special Plan but concluded that the project violated current urban planning regulations and that these deficiencies could not be rectified.
Previously, Fernando Valldeperes, the company's CEO, had stated his intention to file an appeal, arguing that the 1995 General Urban Planning Plan regulations should not be a reason to halt projects promoting renewable energy.
Now, a formal request has been made to the Basque Government to consider the project of public interest. Furthermore, Ferosca has submitted modifications that will affect the unit power of the machines, specifically, increasing the power from 4.5 MW to 7 MW without changing the hub height or rotor diameter of the wind turbines.
These changes would not require an environmental impact assessment. The wind farm, consisting of three wind turbines (initially six were planned), would thus achieve a power output of 21 MW.