New partnership benefits farmers
A new partnership between a renewable energy supplier and a wind turbine manufacturer is poised to help farmers throughout the UK make the most of their land.
Farmers can expect annual savings of upwards of £2,0001 from the installation of just one 15KW wind turbine. In addition they would get over £1,000 from ROCs (Renewables Obligation Certificates) and further savings2 from their sales of surplus electricity.
These figures, which are based on UK average wind speeds of five metres per second, increase substantially3 if winds are stronger. The higher the wind speed the faster the wind farm investment will be repaid. And the turbines are designed to work whatever the weather. The blades bend and flex and will continue to generate electricity through the fiercest gales.
All the farmer needs to install the turbines is a site with good exposure, good access and a reasonable amount of ground space.
Proven Energy Ltd manufactures small domestic size wind turbines from 600 watts to the new 15 KW, all suitable for light agricultural use. Green Energy UK plc, which buys the renewable energy from farmers, offers flexible contracts especially designed for farmers' needs and will buy the ROCs at an advantageous rate.
"Both our companies have identified the agricultural market as an ideal sector," says Alan Powell who looks after the sales at Proven. "At a time when the farmers are more focused than ever on managing costs and generating new revenue, we offer a very attractive and simple solution."
The turbines are not as intrusive as larger models, making it far easier to obtain planning permission. A 2.5KW turbine which can power a three bedroom house is no taller than a telegraph pole. Even the largest 15KW turbine is only 15 metres high with a blade diameter of nine metres.
"As a one-time farmer, I understand all to well the pressures on the farming community," observes Ramsay Dunning, finance director of Green Energy UK.
He points out that farmers can obtain a farming diversification grant for up to 50 per cent of the funding as well as local sources of funding. "These grants makes a wind turbine installation financially viable for even the smallest farmer," he continues. "And the turbines provide valuable additional revenue whilst the land can continue to be used as normal."
The system is versatile and totally automated. If there is not enough wind, the electricity flows from the National Grid connection. When the wind resumes and the blades start turning again it switches back automatically to wind generation.
An added benefit of Proven's turbines is that they are extremely quiet. In large wind-farm type turbines, noise comes from the gear box. Proven's turbines have no gear-box in the turbine head and have a direct drive permanent magnet generator to minimise noise.
The turbines can be sited to have minimal visual impact and can be painted any colour to blend with the countryside.
Proven Energy Ltd has worldwide experience and has installed over 700 wind turbines in over 30 countries, of which 70 are on farms in the Falkland Islands. The company client list spans some international giants of industry including O2, Vodafone, Shell, BP and Sainsbury's.
Green Energy UK, which is one of only four companies recommended by Friends of the Earth, has an unusual business model: it is giving away half of its business in shares; the first 100,000 customers are getting 400 shares each. Further details are available on the company's website www. greenenergy.uk.com
It also is ploughing back 50 per cent of the profits into developing renewable energy technologies, such as tidal generation, solar power, small-scale hydro, biomass facilities and wind farms.
It has established a very varied customer base in a relatively short time. These range from £150 pa users to Lords and Knights, charities and churches, the Duchy of Cornwall, the Isle of Gigha and a number of household names in the building industry.
