LOCATION/TYPE

NEWS HOME

[ exact phrase in "" • results by date ]

[ Google-powered • results by relevance ]



Archive
RSS

Add NWW headlines to your site (click here)

Get weekly updates

WHAT TO DO
when your community is targeted

RSS

RSS feeds and more

Keep Wind Watch online and independent!

Donate via Paypal

Donate via Stripe

Selected Documents

All Documents

Research Links

Alerts

Press Releases

FAQs

Campaign Material

Photos & Graphics

Videos

Allied Groups

Wind Watch is a registered educational charity, founded in 2005.

News Watch Home

Energy firm tops cash subsidies list 

Credit:  North-West Evening Mail, www.nwemail.co.uk 22 September 2011 ~~

One of the companies building a windfarm off the Furness coast is netting more cash from the government than any other in the UK.

Dong Energy, which is behind the Walney Windfarm, has a large stake in three offshore developments that will net the Danish firm more than £98m in subsidies. Dong also has a 50 per cent share in a 175-turbine farm at London Array.

The government incentives, known as Renewable Obligations Certificate payments, are proportionate to the amount of energy produced by each windfarm.

The subsidies are added to household energy bills, which are set to soar as the cold months draw in.

The government has said the subsidies are no more generous than those offered in other EU countries. But two thirds of all wind turbines in the UK are owned by foreign firms.

Another company behind a windfarm off the coast of Walney is Swedish company Vattenfall.

A spokesman for the Department for Energy and Climate Change said: “The subsidy levels in the UK are lower than a number of nations.

“We have the best free wind resources in Europe, so it’s no surprise global firms want to invest and build in the UK.”

Investment into offshore wind has created thousands of jobs across the UK, hundreds of which are in Cumbria.

Stuart Klosinski, industrial developmentmanager at Furness Enterprise, commended companies like Dong for their investment in the local economy.

He said: “Dong last year invested around £12m into the Barrow area whilst ramping up construction of the Walney windfarm.

“This year they have added substantially to that with local spend with suppliers and, by building a multimillion pound second Operations and Maintenance base, we expect operation and maintenance spend year by year over the life of the farm to see up to half the reported £98m subsidy come back locally.

“Dong’s presence here is stimulating new activity such as Cwind’s training centre and we would also be keen to see Dong and other wind farm developers deliver much more of their multi-billion pound Irish Sea Wind Farm spend in either research and development or manufacturing in the coastal areas adjacent to where they site their developments.”

A spokesman for RenewableUK, the trade body for the industry, said: “The liberalised electricity market brought in by Margaret Thatcher has made the UK a great place to do business.

“Factoring in the best wind resource in Europe, it’s no surprise that companies from overseas would want to invest here. The industry employs 10,000 people in the UK, and invested nearly £2bn last year alone.”

Source:  North-West Evening Mail, www.nwemail.co.uk 22 September 2011

This article is the work of the source indicated. Any opinions expressed in it are not necessarily those of National Wind Watch.

The copyright of this article resides with the author or publisher indicated. As part of its noncommercial educational effort to present the environmental, social, scientific, and economic issues of large-scale wind power development to a global audience seeking such information, National Wind Watch endeavors to observe “fair use” as provided for in section 107 of U.S. Copyright Law and similar “fair dealing” provisions of the copyright laws of other nations. Send requests to excerpt, general inquiries, and comments via e-mail.

Wind Watch relies entirely
on User Funding
   Donate via Paypal
(via Paypal)
Donate via Stripe
(via Stripe)

Share:

e-mail X FB LI TG TG Share


News Watch Home

Get the Facts
CONTACT DONATE PRIVACY ABOUT SEARCH
© National Wind Watch, Inc.
Use of copyrighted material adheres to Fair Use.
"Wind Watch" is a registered trademark.

 Follow:

Wind Watch on X Wind Watch on Facebook

Wind Watch on Linked In Wind Watch on Mastodon