Posted on 10-7-2002
Wind
Energy Turns Kintyre Economy Around
CAMPBELTOWN, Scotland, July 8, 2002 (ENS) - Originally an area
known best
for its fishing fleet, its music festival, and the distillation
of whisky,
the Kintyre Peninsula is now host to the UK's most efficient
windfarm,
which officially opened today. The 46 wind turbines on the peninsula's
highest hill will deliver an output of 30 megawatts, enough
to supply
electricity to 25,000 homes.
Scottish Power's £21 million (US$32.4 million) wind energy project
is able
to produce its power so efficiently because the Kintyre Peninsula
is one of
the windiest spots in Europe. Minister for Energy Brian Wilson
said, "This
project shows that the technology is now available to produce
not only
clean but also efficient electricity from wind power." The 40
metre (131
foot) high towers sit on top of a hill called Beinn an Tuirc,
454 metres
(1,489 feet) above sea level. The wind travels unimpeded across
the
Atlantic Ocean, gathering speed, until it hits the blades that
extend 47
metres (154 feet) in diameter.
The development is expected to prevent 92,000 metric tonnes
(101,400 tons)
of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere.
As part
of the windfarm project, conservation reserves will be created
on the
surrounding land, to help build the threatened population of
black grouse.
The windfarm is situated at the edge of a long established golden
eagle
territory and during development there has been large scale
habitat
management aimed at making the territory more sustainable in
the future.
The traditional sources of employment on the Kintyre Peninsula
are in
decline. The fishing fleet is a fraction of its former size.
The area was
once the capital of whisky production in Scotland with 30 distilleries,
but
only one is still producing. A menswear factory is the single
largest
employer in the area, but it has recently cut its workforce.
There was a
factory producing model aircraft that has recently closed. Golf
and
yachting draw some tourists to Kintyre's charming accomodations.
But now
there is hope of sustainable employment in the wind power industry.
The Kintyre wind farm is the first three windfarm developments
planned in
Argyll by Scottish Power. Two further developments, one of which
one has
already gained consent, are expected to bring local jobs, primarily
in
their construction. In another wind boost for the economically
depressed
peninsula, a new Vestas wind turbine manufacturing plant has
been
constructed on the site of a former Royal Air Force base near
the Kintyre
town of Machrihanish. It will produce the first British built
wind
turbines. The Macrihanish factory will carry out the construction
of the
wind turbine towers and generator cabins, and will also be responsible
for
their final assembly. Manufacturing of the turbines' fibreglass
nose cones
will be subcontracted. The Danish firm Vestas currently holds
30 percent of
world sales of wind turbine capacity. UK windfarm developer
Powergen
Renewables announced in June that it will buy its first British
built wind
turbines from the Macrihanish Vestas factory in a £25 million
deal. The 71
turbines have been earmarked for Powergen Renewables' 60 megawatt
Derrybrien project in County Galway in the Republic of Ireland.
An option
has been agreed for a further 51 turbines.
Powergen Renewables general manager Dr. Chris Morris said, "Until
now, the
option of buying British built turbines did not exist, and we're
delighted
to be able finally to put that right." "As one of the UK's leading
wind
farm developers, we believe that this order is good news for
everyone," he
said. "We get proven, effective turbines, the UK wind industry
gets a major
boost and we help create and maintain jobs in the local community
hard hit
by unemployment." Earlier this year, Powergen Renewables announced
a 1,000
megawatt target in its renewable capacity by 2010, split 80-20
between its
existing wind farm business and a new biomass division. Energy
Minister
Wilson said, "Renewables is not just about energy and the environment
but
also about manufacturing and jobs. There are very significant
opportunities
for UK industry and if they respond well to this, it will result
in new
generating equipment and services being supplied by UK firms."
The UK government has called for 10 percent of the UK's electricity
requirements to be generated from renewable sources by 2010,
and the Irish
government has targeted 500 megawatts of renewable energy by
2005.
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