Energy Minister Fergus Ewing MSP, this week officially opened Scotland’s latest wind farm, near Alness, Ross-shire unlocking a £1.5m green wind-fall for the neighbouring community.
The 36.8MW, 16 turbine, Novar 2 Wind Farm took two years to construct and is the latest clean energy project built by RWE npower renewables to come on stream in the UK.
It has been built alongside the existing Novar Wind Farm, on the Novar Estate and, combined, the two farms could generate up to 54MW, producing enough electricity for 25,000 homes.1
The construction of Novar 2 has also provided an important boost to the local area, as 81% of the investment associated with the civil contracts has been spent with local businesses including Dingwall based RJ McLeod.2
Project Manager Morgan Houtmayer said the wind farm is good news all round: “Not only will Novar 2 contribute to Scottish Government targets of 100% of renewable electricity by 2020. It has also benefited local businesses during construction and will continue to benefit the community for many years to come.
“The community benefit fund in association with the existing Novar Wind Farm will total in excess of £350,000 over the lifetime of the wind farm. With the Novar 2 Wind Farm coming on stream, an additional community benefit of more than £1.5 million pounds over the life of the site will be available to the local community with funding spilt between Kiltearn, Ardross and Alness communities. The original Novar Fund is already benefiting a diverse range of local groups and now with Novar 2, the opportunities are even greater.”
RWE npower renewables now manages around 281 MW from its wind and hydro developments in Scotland providing over 144,000 homes with electricity from renewables sources.
With nearly half of the company’s total onshore wind portfolio in Scotland, RWE npower renewables is currently working with Scottish Enterprise, and Highlands and Islands Enterprise to ensure a robust Scottish supply chain is in place for future wind farm and hydro construction projects.
Minister, Fergus Ewing MSP: "Scotland has astounding green energy potential and vast natural resources, and we have a responsibility to make sure our nation seizes this opportunity to create tens of thousands of new jobs and secure billions of pounds of investment in our economy.
"The Scottish Government is determined to ensure communities all over Scotland reap the benefit from renewable energy. We welcome the payment of community benefit at the Novar 2 Wind Farm, and encourage companies to pay more to ensure all communities receive a proper share of the rewards from renewable energy."
Contact:
Alda Forbes, RWE npower renewables
Senior PR Officer, Scotland
E. alda.forbes@rwe.com
T: 01738 825124
Notes
1."The energy predicted to be generated by an operational project is based on operational data analysis, where sufficient is available, or long term output predictions derived from wind monitoring at the site. The energy capture and equivalent homes or emission savings figures relating to this project may change as more operational information is gathered"
Equivalent homes supplied is based on an annual electricity consumption per home of 4700 kWh. This figure is supported by recent domestic electricity consumption data available from The Digest of UK Energy Statistics and household estimates and projections from the UK Statistics Authority.
2. Contractors who have shared in the success of Novar 2
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