Building products firm in bid to power factory with wind turbine
Wednesday 04 March 2009
 |
| A montage of the proposed E82 wind turbine at the Pollington site on Humberside |
Building products manufacturer H+H is hoping to provide energy for its Humberside production site from the wind, under a partnership with electricity supplier Ecotricity.
The company, which makes "aircrete" breeze blocks at the Pollington factory, has signed up to Ecotricity's Merchant Wind Power scheme, where the power company builds wind turbines on customer sites to provide renewable power for their needs.
A 2MW wind turbine is being proposed for the Pollington factory site near Goole in East Yorkshire, to feed power directly into the factory, with excess power being fed into the grid for use by local homes.
H+H has been making aircrete - also known as aerated concrete - since the 1950s, formerly under the name Celcon. The material itself has energy benefits as a structural insulation for buildings, and is made from 80% pulverised fuel ash recycled from coal power stations.
The wind project marks the latest step for the company's sustainability efforts that have so far seen it named as one of the top 50 "green" firms in the construction sector.
H+H UK managing director Mark Oliver said the Ecotricity project would mean a turbine providing the equivalent energy for nearly 1,500 homes, with a quick pay-off of the energy used in manufacturing and installing the turbine.
In practical terms, the 4.82 million units of electricity a year expected to be generated by the turbine will provide all of the Pollington site's power needs, with a little excess to be sold off to the national grid.
He said: "This would offset hundreds of tonnes of carbon dioxide per year and repay our energy debt in no more than the first nine months of its 30-year expected lifespan."
Turbine
With the country in the grip of an energy crisis and government policy pushing for more than 20% of our electricity from renewables, projects like this are essential.
Ecotricity is proposing to use an Enercon E82 turbine, which would be 121 metres high to the blade tip, designed to operate in wind speeds of between 2.5 m/s (5mph) and 22-28 m/s (49-62mph),
with a design life of up to 30 years.
The company has already started consulting local residents and statutory bodies regarding a planning application.
Ecotricity's Merchant Wind Power scheme has previously seen the likes of Sainsbury's, B&Q, Lotus cars and the Co-operative Bank provided with their own wind power since 2001.
Mr Oliver said: "In these days of unarguable climate change, with the country in the grip of an energy crisis and government policy pushing for more than 20% of our electricity from renewables, projects like this are essential if we're to keep the lights on in the future."
Print
