Former RAF base Machrihanish near Cambeltown, Scotland has been bought by the local community with the potential to turn it into a renewable energy site.
It was bought with the help from the Scottish government, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Argyll and Bute Council.
Benefits of the deal include £1.7 million investment in local infrastructure and £300,000 to improve the condition of the base. The deal is the most complicated and largest under land reform legislation.
The site covers an area of more than 1,025 acres on the Kintyre peninsula, and is considered a key location in the Government’s national renewable infrastructure plan.
Scottish Environmental Minister Stewart Stevenson said: “Land ownership is key to building independent, resilient rural communities and creating a sense of confidence and community empowerment.
“That’s why the Scottish Government fully supports buy-outs and is committed to providing opportunities for rural communities to acquire land.”
Scottish Enterprise Minister Fergus Ewing added: “There is potential now for Machrihanish to reap the benefits of the expansion of the renewables industry in Scotland and build growth in the tourism and leisure sectors, this will benefit Kintyre as a whole.”
Future commercial uses include the potential for renewable energy and biomass. It is already the site of a wind turbine tower manufacturing facility.
