An Arbroath firm has urged Angus Council to safeguard jobs when they consider a turbine application at its plant.
Bairds Malt has 57 Angus employees and has supply contracts with more than 1,000 farms, 230 of them across the region.
It believes a single turbine will safeguard jobs and significantly reduce the electricity consumption of the plant.
The energy consumption at the facility costs £3.5 million per annum and the company said the turbine would see this figure reduced by a third.
Bairds Malt submitted their application to Angus Council in December last year and the latest plea has been made ahead of the July 31 determination date.
Richard Broadbent, the firm’s technical director, said: “Bairds Malt brings significant investment into our community and provides employment for many families in the area.
“Due to the volatility of global markets, we can’t control the economy but we can operate within it.
“Our proposed turbine would enable us to significantly reduce our costs, allowing us to maintain our level of business and remain competitive.”
Bairds Malt has also rejected Angus Council’s landscape officer’s report which was published in April. The report by Stewart Roberts claimed the proposed wind turbine would adversely affect the setting of Arbroath and historic landmarks such as its abbey.
The damning report also stated that the single turbine would “dominate houses and have an overbearing effect”.
Mr Broadbent responded: “We were understandably disappointed by the officer’s report and do not agree with the assessment of the application.
“While we acknowledge views on our application will vary, we are hopeful that Angus Council as a whole will support us as a local company.”