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Wednesday 5 October 2005

Industry calls for bold Government action to open up our urban wind resource

The British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) today called on the Government to propose bold measures to open up the UK's urban wind resource.

In its response to the Government's Microgeneration Strategy BWEA has urged action to drive a mass market for small wind power, for our homes, schools and offices, to help meet our long-term climate targets.

BWEA has highlighted the following four key areas where Government must act:

  • The Government needs to identify the right policy and fiscal measures to drive a large-scale market for small wind. A number of possible options must be examined and tested urgently. They range from capital grants for homeowners, increased revenue support for the power generated, net metering (whereby the power generated by microgeneration is deducted from the gross electricity consumption), council tax rebates along with tightening up our building regulations.
  • Planning permission is at present required for microgeneration technologies such as small wind turbines and can both delay installation and is a substantial cost to individuals. Given the right Health & Safety framework, the Government should introduce permitted development rights for certain technology types
  • Government must commit to establishing national and regional microgeneration targets
  • As the market expands Government must implement a robust product accreditation system and guidance on installation, maintenance and dismantling for microgeneration technologies.

Chris Tomlinson, Head of Onshore at BWEA said:

"Day by day we see an increasing number of reports on the impacts of climate change and how it is affecting our planet. The Government has made a strong commitment to large scale renewables through the Renewables Obligation and good progress is being made to develop our on and offshore wind resource. This year a record number of wind projects will be commissioned, totalling 500MW of new wind capacity with even more expected next year.

However, we must urgently open up another renewable front; the power of wind from our homes, schools and offices. 28% of the UK's CO2 emissions come from housing. Microgeneration technologies such as small wind turbines must play a key role in reducing domestic emissions by allowing people to generate part or all of their heat and electricity. There are also substantial benefits for fuel poverty, and microgeneration is ideal for communities and small businesses.

The demand for small scale wind is growing by the day. The public, utilities and energy supply companies are showing strong interest and we have a good manufacturing base in the UK. What is now needed is bold action from the Government to put all these pieces together and help create a viable and vibrant market for small scale wind for our cities and towns.

Notes to Editors

1. The British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) is the UK's leading renewable energy body with over 320 company members. With over 27 years experience, BWEA is leading the UK debate on wind energy and marine industries. BWEA's specialist team provides members with essential market information and in-depth technical support. In addition, BWEA lobbies on behalf of members, conducts profile raising campaigns and organises business development opportunities across the year, including the industry's main annual conference and exhibition.

2. The Microgeneration Strategy consultation was launched in July 2005 and public consultation period ended in September 2005. Microgeneration is the production of heat (less than 45 kilowatt capacity) and/or electricity (less than 50kW capacity) from zero or low carbon source technologies. Various technologies can be used for microgeneration such as small scale wind, air source heat pumps, ground source heat pumps, fuel cells, micro-CHP, micro-hydro, bio-energy and solar (thermal and photovoltaic). DTI is leading on the consultation, and the final Strategy will be published in April 2006 which will define the development of microgeneration in Britain.

3. BWEA's response can be found at http://www.bwea.com/pdf/Microgeneration_Strategy.pdf

4. There are around 25 million domestic dwellings in the UK and around 24,000 schools. If 2.5 million homes, i.e. one in ten, installed a 1 kW turbine, this would be equal to 2.5 GW of generation capacity. With 30%* load factor that would produce 6.6TWh (2% of UK electricity consumption or 6% of domestic electricity consumption). It would displace around 7.3TWh of generation (because generation at point of use avoids system losses) and so save about 6 million tonnes of CO2 each year – equivalent to 1.7 million tonnes of carbon each year.

*30% is used as a representative figure in the calculations. Load factor of individual turbines will depend on site conditions and in particular average wind speed. For example, a turbine with a load factor of 30% at a site with an average wind speed of 6 meters per second (m/s) might have a load factor of 20% at a site with an average wind speed of 5m/s and a load factor of 40% at a site with an average wind speed of 7m/s.

For more information, contact Mari Martiskainen, Communications and Small Wind Officer, BWEA, 020 7689 1935 or mari@bwea.com.