THREE Scottish estates have been put up for sale by a rewilding company – calling into question the success of plans that were made for the blocks of land.

Estates owned by the company headed by a former director of Greenpeace are to go on the market for almost £10m to repay a loan taken out for buying land for nature restoration.

The 866-acre Beldorney estate in Aberdeenshire and the 834-acre North Bunloit estate on the western shores of Loch Ness are among those brought to market by Strutt & Parker on behalf of Highland Rewilding for offers of more than £5m and £2.2m, respectively.

The Ulva and Isle of Danna estate on the Tayvallich Peninsula, the largest of the three at 1269 acres, is also available at offers over £3.7m.

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Highland Rewilding is seeking buyers or investors who want to deliver rewilding at scale by investing in the three estates.

Highlands Rewilding founder Jeremy Leggett said the company ‘deliberately skated on thin ice’ taking out the loan ‘to try and drive a rapidly-scaling breakthrough for nature restoration in Scotland’.

Mr Leggett of Highlands Rewilding Ltd (HRL), has until January to pay off £11m borrowed from state-owned UK Infrastructure Bank, largely used to buy the company’s Tayvallich estate in Argyll last May.

Beldorney estate, in Aberdeenshire is currently managed with the aim of achieving income streams through the provision of ecosystem services.

Goals included improving grasslands through regenerative agriculture and expanding wetland habitats.

North Bunloit is on the western shores of Loch Ness and largely comprises conifer plantations, peatland and bog alongside areas of ancient native woodland and heath.

The Ulva and Isle of Danna estate is described as one of the ‘richest areas of conservation importance in the Argyll area’.

However, the owner of Highlands Rewilding Jeremy Leggett, who sold his renewable power developer Solarcentury to Norwegian state energy giant Statkraft in 2020 for £117.7m, has stressed that the sales are not aimed at paying off a loan.

He has said the sales were to allow him to ‘replicate a model that guarantees community-centred nature recovery in perpetuity’.

He explained: “We call this our nature and community in perpetuity model.

“Only in the unlikely event that we fail in our current fundraising round will we use the proceeds from the land sales to repay the loan that allowed us to buy Tayvallich in the first place.”

He also hit back at suggestions this was a ‘fire sale’, saying: “Most of the coverage seems to assume the simple story that we are going bankrupt and have only put our land on sale to repay debts. It’s more complicated and more positive than that.”

One local resident who lives close to the Beldorney estate said: “These sales are all quite worrying, in my opinion. It leaves local residents not knowing what the future lies for these large parcels of land that they live in close proximity to.

“I feel it is clear that the plans that were made for this land to be ‘rewilded’ have not worked out, and that they are now being offloaded to pay off debts, with no thought to the people in the areas surrounding them. Local bids are an option, but it is hardly small change that is being asked for, so we will wait with baited breath to see what comes of the situation. The timescales are tight to be raising such large amounts of money.

“Also, the company say they would prefer buyers to support their ‘nature recovery objectives’, but if that hasn’t worked out so far, will it in the future?”

Head of estates and farm agency for Strutt & Parker, Robert McCulloch, said: “This is a unique opportunity with buyers being offered a choice amongst three scenic estates, hosting a wide array of habitats and wildlife species, which also include residential properties ranging from a 16th century castle to a recently built architectural award-winning contemporary home.

“While this is an open market sale, which encourages the interest of purchasers of all types, the preferred bidders are those who share Highland Rewilding’s vision for the future and are willing to enter into a long-term management agreement with Highlands Rewilding.”

In a letter to community groups, Mr Leggett confirmed residents get first refusal as buyers, with the deadline of December 10 to make an offer.

Community groups have said various meetings and votes are taking place over the coming days in response to the news.

Failing a community bid, Mr Leggett said the priority will go to land buyers ‘prepared to guarantee nature recovery and community prosperity in perpetuity through establishment of a dedicated Trust, with HRL partnered as land manager, sharing natural capital proceeds’. 

Mr Leggett said other potential buyers the company is targeting include family offices, environmental NGOs, and other philanthropic bodies ‘where there is strong alignment of values and objectives’.

A local community in the Highlands has agreed to explore the purchase of some or all of the Bunloit estate, with support from charity Trees for Life, to ensure community-led rewilding on the land by the loch.

Following a public consultation event at Glenurquhart Public Hall in Drumnadrochit on September 25, Glen Urquhart Rural Community Association (GURCA) is to explore all options for purchasing all or part of the estate.

Chair of GURCA, Susan Griffin said: “We have decided to explore this rare opportunity for a community buyout, given that Highlands Rewilding founder and CEO Jeremy Leggett has said the local community will have first refusal on any purchase.”