A BILLIONAIRE from Dubai has installed solar panels on his Scottish estate without planning permission.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, owner of the Inverinate Estate in Wester Ross and UAE’s prime minister, is seeking retrospective planning permission from the Highland Council.
Representatives of the Dubai ruler claim he secretly installed the solar panels on his 63,000-acre Highland estate in a bid to improve its “sustainability performance”.
The 76-year-old's Inverinate Estate, which overlooks Loch Duich, is a conservation area which is home to a number of protected species including Eurasian otters, pipistrelle bats and European hedgehogs.
Rashid al-Maktoum, who has a fortune of around £14.6 billion, installed the new solar photovoltaic panels on the roof of his Loch View House.
A design statement reads: “Solar photovoltaic (PV) panels have been installed on the roof to enhance the building’s sustainability performance in line with national and local renewable energy goals.
“Their location ensures minimal visual impact.”
Documents also show alterations have been made to the property’s ventilation system along with plans for new staff facilities and an access road.
A statement, within the plans, reads: “This retrospective application reflects necessary and beneficial modifications made during the construction and operational planning phases.
“The proposed changes are minor in scale relative to the approved development and are fully justified in terms of functional necessity, sustainability, and design integrity.
“We respectfully request that The Highland Council support this application.”
The UAE’s prime minister has owned the estate for more than two decades, which includes three large houses, a cottage, two lodges and three helipads.
Rashid al-Maktoum was recently granted planning approval to build a ninth house on the estate in April.
One resident told The Sunday Telegraph: “I think he has been good to the local community, but he’s rarely in Scotland, so why the constant expansion on the estate?”
Another added that the sweeping building works had “become a little bit too much in recent years for an estate which doesn’t appear to be used much”.
A Highland Council spokesperson said: “The planning application for proposed alterations and extensions (retrospective) Loch View House Inverinate Kyle is currently under consideration and no decision has been taken at this stage.”
