Deputy First Minister Nicol Stephen MSP officially opened not one but two renewable energy schemes today - npower renewables Garrogie Hydro Scheme and its flagship Farr Wind Farm, both south of Inverness.

The 40 turbines at the £70 million Farr Wind Farm, completed back in June this year after receiving consent from the Scottish Executive in October 2004, have acombined output of 92 megawatts. As the UK's third largest wind farm it will meet the annual electricity needs of some 54,000 homes - equal to more than half of all the homes across the Highlands of Scotland helping offset carbon dioxide emissions by some 215,000 tonnes every year.

The £3 million Garrogie Hydro Scheme is capable of generating 2.4 megawatts of renewable electricity which is enough to power some 2,000 homes and offset around 8,500 tonnes of carbon dioxide each year. The site was originally investigated in the late 1800's but it wasn't until 1994 that the site was re-discovered and in 2000 that npower renewables took on the baton of investigating the potential of the site. The site was completed in early 2005.

Deputy First Minister, Nicol Stephen MSP, said: "We are committed to meeting our renewables targets and it is precisely because of developments such as these at Farr and Garrogie that we are well on course to achieve them.

"Recently I announced an additional £20 million investment in emerging technologies such as biomass and marine energy, to help ensure that we continue to harness Scotland's tremendous diversity of resource. The schemes here are further evidence of Scotland's capacity to produce renewable energy from a wide range of sources.

"As well as the environmental benefits, schemes such as Farr and Garrogie also bring enormous economic rewards to Scotland, boosting our economy and creating jobs. I am delighted to officially open both projects and congratulate everyone involved."

Kevin McCullough, Director of npower renewables said: "These two projects together increase npower renewables operating portfolio across Scotland to nearly 200 megawatts which represents around 40% of our total business. This marks a substantial investment by the company into the Scottish economy."

Mr McCullough added: "Today is a tribute to the expertise and skill of both npower renewables staff and the contractors involved throughout the construction period. Much hard work has got us here today and we are proud to add these two projects to our portfolio."

These 2 schemes are helping the environment not only through the generation of renewable energy but also through the extensive Environmental Management Plan that has been implemented at each location.

During the construction of Garrogie measures were undertaken to protect local bat and otter populations in line with guidelines laid down by the Scottish Executives Environment and Rural Affairs Department (SSERAD). Further more where the ground was disturbed re-instatement work has already been carried out and is beginning to recover.

With the habitat at Farr consisting of highly-degraded blanket bog in an area used as grouse moor, a wider range of environmental techniques were employed to not only protect but also enhance the area. The Environmental Management Plan was conducted in liaison with the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency, Scottish Natural Heritage and The Highland Council before and during the construction period.

Some of the environmental work carried out at Farr ranged from building temporary silt ponds and water quality monitoring to maintain high water quality levels, to the re-location of sensitive and uncommon plant species such as Bog Moss Sphagnum hummocks. Cutting edge hydroseeding was also carried out - this involves applying a special bog and heath seed mix to damaged ground using a hydromulch technique. Around 50 hectares of land has been restored back to bog and heath.

It is not just the environment that has benefited from these schemes but also the local communities of Strathdearn and Strathnairn which are due to receive a payment £105,000 each year plus a one off payment of £1 million to promote local projects of an environmental, educational or charitable nature.