New wind energy ‘turnkey’ deal offered to farmers, landowners and communities
The offer comes following the commencement of the new Feed in Tariff incentive from April 2010 which is aimed at maximising community and small scale renewable energy development. A major barrier to uptake of these schemes is the risk associated with capital investment and the planning process which SSE will manage free of charge for clients. Free site assessments are also offered as part of what SSE describes as a ‘turnkey’ package to enable more people to get into the market, with wind projects ranging from 500kW to 5MW**.
Bob Bryce from SSE Renewables said: “This offer is a way of bringing in more people to the market and to realise the potential for renewable energy in new ways. One of the major barriers for many people and communities is the risk associated with investment capital, and the technical process of delivery. This is where we come in, and the economic benefits of renewables can in turn be spread further across the wider community. We look forward to engaging with landowners and the rural economic community at this year’s Show and beyond.”
“Feed-In Tariff schemes can work well in generating sustainable revenues for local communities, especially where they already own land suitable for a wind turbine development. We also have experience with communities that don’t own land but do have an appetite for investment. In this event we are able to set up a three way arrangement that benefits both the community and landowner.”
The CCW Team offers landowners (with a minimum of 20 acres) a deal potentially capable of paying land rentals of up to 50,000 per annum for a single turbine development. The turbine requires no more than one or two percent of the land area and the land remains available for most existing uses, such as crops, grazing or sport. The offer includes design, development, planning consent, construction and operation of a wind turbine on land without the need for risk or investment. A Landowner Questionnaire is also available from the website for this purpose to download and return. SSE responsibility includes de-commissioning of the equipment at the end of its life. Returns will typically be offered as attractive land rentals against a 30 year lease. The offer will be dependent on a variety of site and technology specifics including quality of the wind, access and grid constraints.
*SSE has a marquee in the Renewables area of the Royal Highland Show and is hosting a business reception on Friday 25th June from 1pm. There will be a keynote speech by the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment Richard Lochhead MSP, at 145pm.
There will also be a panel session at 2pm with Ian Marchant – SSE Chief Executive, James Withers – NFUS Chief Executive and Stuart Goodall – CONFOR Chief Executive. The panel will discuss renewable opportunities for farmers, foresters and land managers.
**About the Commercial and Community Wind Team
Contact the CCW team for a free site assessment:-
Freephone: 0800 975 3337
Email: ccw@sserenewables.com
Fax: 01738 456 169The Commercial and Community Wind (CCW) team at SSE Renewables is already focused on delivery of medium scale solutions offering wind power generation from 500kW up to 20MW and has a large pipeline of existing wind turbine projects. Now with full company support we are able to offer FIT solutions across the generation range from 500kW up to 5MW, in addition to our normal business.
Wind Technology is a major focus within SSE with a large number of wind turbine installations completed since 1985. Over 840MW of wind generation capacity is already in operation, with an additional 1,290MW already in construction and consented and a significant number of major onshore and offshore projects being planned for the next few years.
About SSE
The SSE Group is one of the UKs biggest energy companies, with a major interest in electricity as a generator, distributor and supplier to over 9.35 million customers.
SSE is the largest supplier of renewable electricity in the UK with a current portfolio of over 2,370MW of sustainable generation.