The row between Donald Trump and his millionaire’s gold course versus EOWDC (the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre) in Anerdeen Bay, Scotland rumbles on with Trump claiming a victory of sorts.
The reason for Trump’s crowing is Swedish firm Vattenfall’s decision to put up for sale its 75% stake in EOWDC. Trump had stopped all investment in his luxury Scottish Golf Course because of the proposed offshore wind farm.
Vattenfall’s decision came as a surprise even to insiders in the wind energy business. The timing was also unusual. Just one day after test drilling for the offshore site in Aberdeen Bay had begun. Trump has claimed that this puts the £230 million development for the partnership of Vattenfall, Aberdeen Renewable Energy Group andTechnip Offshore Wind not just in doubt, but dead in the water.
The consortium has denied this as new investors are being sought.
Mr Trump branded the wind farm a “monstrous eyesore”, said:
“This is just a nice way of them bowing out gracefully. No investor would be stupid enough to go anywhere near this project because it will lose tens of millions each year.”
Trump has already issued a legal challenege claiming that the offshore turbines will ruin the view from his nearby multi-million-pound golf course.
Vattenfall’s profits had fallen sharply this year and it announced in March that it is to axe 2,500 jobs across Europe as part of a cost-cutting drive.
Contrary to Mr Trump’s view, a spokeswoman for the consortium said:
“Vattenfall said it is confident it will secure new investment through a dilution of its shareholding in the company behind the project.”
The suspicion is that Trump is just being mischevious, sniping at the project in the hope he will scare off new investors, and thus save the view his golfers currently have of Aberdeen Bay.
I wonder whether the electricity that serves the Club House uses green energy? I think we should be told!
