AN ENERGY company has confirmed that it has scaled down its proposal for a windfarm development in Peeblesshire.

West Coast Energy has submitted an application to Scottish Borders Council to erect eight turbines reaching up to 100 metres at Hag Law near Romanno Bridge.

The Welsh company had originally proposed to construct 11 turbines at the site.

The revised application also features a new site access off the A701 Edinburgh to Moffat road.

West Coast Energy had two public exhibitions in the West Linton area to outline their proposals to residents amid concerns that the plans would harm property values.

If the application is approved, West Coast Energy have pledged 10 per cent of the profits as an annnual community benefit payment. The company claims Hag Law will produce electricity for 10,000 homes.

The original scheme for Hag Law had been conceived as a Section 36 proposal, above the 50MW headline capacity threshold, which would be decided by the Scottish Government. The new proposal has a total installed capacity of around 20MW, so can be decided by the local planning authority.

Councillors have already opposed plans for an 18-turbine windfarm nearby at Cloich Forest, near Eddleston.

The final decision on that development will now be made by the Scottish Government.

Three community councils had lodged objections to the proposals by Cloich Wind Farm LLP and planning official advised Scottish Borders Council to object to the windfarm proposals on the grounds of impact on landscape character.