Plans to expand one of Speyside’s historic whisky distilleries have been blocked after a clash with an energy giant over land earmarked for a major new power line. Aberdeenshire Council has refused permission for two new whisky warehouses at Glendronach, near Forgue, after Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) warned the buildings would conflict with its proposed Beauly to Peterhead 400kV overhead transmission line.
The Benriach Distillery Company, which owns Glendronach, had applied to build two whisky storage warehouses with associated infrastructure to “build upon the continued success” of the distillery and support its role in the local rural economy. The firm argued that extra storage would generate income to help maintain the site’s Category B-listed buildings and “reinforce” its contribution to jobs and investment in the area.
Council planners, however, ruled that the development was not appropriate for the “remote rural area” and said the proposed site “clashes with the location of a new high voltage electricity transmission line”. In a decision issued on 5 January, the authority concluded the warehouses could not be supported given the national importance of the grid upgrade and the competing demands on the land.
SSEN, which is developing the Beauly to Peterhead 400kV line as part of a wider effort to strengthen Scotland’s electricity network, lodged a formal objection to the distillery’s plans. In a letter to the council, the company warned that “our proposed overhead transmission line and the proposed Class 6 distillery warehousing would not be harmonious on the basis of the competing land requirements associated with each respective development’s operational needs”.
The network operator stressed that its design work had reached a stage that “finalises the alignment”, adding that this “prevents us from be[ing] able to change our alignment to avoid interaction with the proposed Class 6 distillery warehousing”. It further stated: “As such, should the proposed Class 6 distillery warehouses be consented in accordance with the current plans, we could not construct our nationally significant new 400kV (400,000 volt) overhead electrical transmission line over these structures for safety, engineering and operational reasons.”
Glendronach’s owners had attempted to reassure both the council and SSEN that a compromise could be found to allow the warehouses and the power line to coexist. In planning documents, the company said SSEN “have specified that they are happy to discuss realignment of the overhead line to ensure a mutually agreeable solution is reached”, signalling its belief that “two grown-up organisations” could work together on an alternative route.
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The distiller also underlined the importance of the expansion to the local economy, pointing out that the site “plays an important role in supporting the local rural community and economy” and that the additional storage “would reinforce this contribution because of the increased income generated.” Despite those assurances, councillors were ultimately not persuaded that the promise of further talks over realignment outweighed the risks flagged by the energy firm.
The refusal has sharpened the focus on tensions between Scotland’s traditional whisky industry and the rapid build-out of energy infrastructure needed for the net zero transition. Across the country, distilleries are investing in new production and storage while also exploring greener technologies such as hydrogen and on-site renewables, even as transmission operators seek corridors for new high-voltage lines.
For now, Glendronach’s expansion is on ice while the Beauly–Peterhead line moves a step closer, prompting some in the industry to characterise the decision as a rare victory for “lightning over liquor”. But with the distillery continuing to argue that its historic buildings can be protected and modernised alongside critical grid upgrades, few expect this particular planning wrangle to be the last time whisky and wires find themselves in each other’s path.
