Local Community
To find out more about our work with communities visit our Community webpages.
RWE npower renewables offers a range of community benefit packages at our operating onshore and offshore wind farms, these usually benefit those communities living closest to the site.
There are a number of ways of designing and operating these packages which are negotiated locally to meet the specific needs of individual areas. Packages vary, depending on the size, type and geographical make up of local communities.
Community benefit packages have been used to fund a wide variety of activities including community building refurbishments, environmental education programmes, energy efficiency schemes and supporting local groups and organisations.
In association with the Beinn Ghlas Wind Farm, a community fund has been set up to assist local community projects in Taynuilt. The annual fund started at a base level of £8,000, it is index linked each year in line with inflation and will be available throughout the operational life of the wind farm. The Beinn Ghlas Wind Farm Community Fund is administered by Taynuilt Community Council, this means that decisions about how the fund is allocated are made by local representatives for the benefit of their own community. The Community Council have decided that each year half of the fund will be made available to community projects and half of the fund will be invested for the future, this means that a fund will continue to be available for many years after the end of the operational life of the wind farm.
In 2008 12 grants were awarded totalling £4,435, and included:
| Taynuilt Youth Club | £200 towards a storage cupboard and equipment |
| Taynuilt Mini Rugby | £400 towards strip, equipment and floodlights, to help get new club started |
| Taynuilt Shinty Club | £960 towards purchasing helmets for juniors and insurance costs |
| Taybnuilt Village Hall | £225 towards new window blinds and preserving new wooden fence |
Local Economic Benefits
This £7 million development represents a significant investment by RWE npower renewables in clean and sustainable energy sources and in the Scottish rural economy. Approximately £2.4 million was spent in Scotland and around 25 local construction workers were employed during the construction process.
A further annual income of £70,000 will continue to provide benefit to the local community through business rates, rent and employment of two operations and maintenance staff.
