Work on giant wind turbine could start next summer

Work on an 80m wind turbine to power homes in a town which is off the gas network could begin next summer.

With fuel prices continuing to rise, Dave Green, director of Shropshire and Telford Community Energy, said it was important to look at alternative energy sources.

Originally, the plan for Bishop's Castle had been for the turbine to connect up to a community heat network, but that had to be scrapped because of rising construction costs.

Planning permission for the turbine was granted last summer and Green said work could begin once an agreement was reached for connecting it to the town's power grid.

With gas not an option, many homes in the town rely on oil to heat their homes, but that has risen sharply in cost since the United States and Israel launched their attacks on Iran.

Green said the "first thing that anyone should do is look at reducing their oil use" and that could include getting power from wind turbines or simply by improving insulation.

He said a lot of people in Bishop's Castle had been fitting heat pumps to provide an alternative source of energy, but they were "not suitable for everyone".

Once the wind turbine is erected, he said people in the town would be offered discounted electricity prices through an "energy club" and about 50 people had already shown an interest.

That was "very encouraging", he said.

In the planning application for the turbine, submitted last year, the community energy group said it would generate 1MW of electricity, the equivalent of that used by up to 650 homes.

Replacing existing oil-fuelled heating systems was expected to save up to 1,300 tonnes of carbon dioxide each year over the turbine's 30-year life, the group said.

Rather than supplying to the national grid, the power generated was expected to go directly to a proposed community district heating system.

Green said "unfortunately that scheme is no longer viable", because of the high cost of installing the pipes and because grants had dried up.

That meant he had to find another way of connecting the turbine to the town, possibly through the local Sparc leisure centre, he said.

But that had been "proving difficult" he added, so it was possible work might have to be delayed until 2028.

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