Power to the people! Turbine grid connected and generating power

Sunday, 4 November 2012

Paul Willson, one of the founding directors of Pennine Community Power (PCP) has told the HebWeb that the community wind turbine at Blackshaw Head is now fully up and running, generating an income for the local community.

“We would like to thank everyone who has helped us with this project – not least the 65 shareholders who invested between £250 and £1000 in the turbine.”

PCP surveyed its members to understand what motivated them to get involved with the wind project and the responses can be found at www.powerinthecommunity.org, together with a live feed of how much electricity the wind turbine is generating. At a time when onshore wind power is once more in the glare of the national media, PCP feel that their model of a community owned energy project, where the benefits of the income generated through the turbine are ploughed back into the community, is the way forward. The Government has a stated aim to encourage community ownership of energy projects, and PCP is proud to be at the forefront of this movement.

“As demonstrated by our presentation at a Cooperatives North West meeting in Preston recently, we are willing to help other communities looking to set up similar enterprises. It has been a steep learning curve for the PCP directors and we would welcome the opportunity to share our experiences with other communities”, says director Dr Ashley Sharp.

Click here to see the current status of the turbine, and how much power it has generated over the past 24 hours!

See also:

Community wind turbine on track! (5 September 2012)

Pennine Community Power website

HebWeb News: Community Wind Turbine - share offer success: turbine operational by October.