Thursday 26 September 2013

Coming soon – Scotland’s first co-operative owned wind turbine

The first wind turbine in Scotland to be wholly owned by a co-operative is coming soon, following the recent launch of the Dingwall Wind Co-op.

The 250 kW turbine was originally planned as a private venture but the owners of the Knockbain Farm - where it will be built - were persuaded to turn the project into a co-operative to spread the risks and share the perks.

If all goes to plan the turbine should be installed in March of next year.

David Lockett, landowner and Director of Dingwall Wind Co-op said: “We were keen to take an innovative approach to developing this project. In early 2013 we decided to develop the project as a co-op on the basis that this would provide an income for the farm and allow a large number of people to share in the benefits of the development.”

A recent report found community owned energy in the UK could balloon to almost 90 times its current capacity if the right policies were put in place.