Award Winning Scottish Hydro Scheme to Net £1 Million for Highland Community
Locogen Wins Scottish Green Energy Award with Community Hydro Scheme.
Edinburgh, United Kingdom, December 10, 2017 --(PR.com)-- Locogen received the Best Community Engagement Award at the 2017 Scottish Green Energy Awards ceremony at the EICC in Edinburgh on 1st December. The award was for their Ben Mor Hydro 500kW shared ownership project. The project will generate more than £1 million for partners Coigach Community Development Company & Scottish Wildlife Trust.
The project, an innovative joint venture between Locogen, Coigach Community Development Company (CCDC) & Scottish Wildlife Trust (SWT) is a "run of river" hydro development project near Achiltibuie, northwest of Ullapool. It demonstrates the success of Locogen’s partnership approach and the value of renewable energy projects to local communities.
Construction of the project started in May 2016 and it was commissioned in December 2016. It is predicted to generate 72.5GWh of electricity over its 50-plus years’ operational life, offsetting 39,295 tonnes of CO2 and providing funds of more than £1 million for the local community. These funds will be reinvested in new initiatives which will ensure the ongoing sustainability and enhancement of the local area.
Ian Muir, CCDC's Chair, said: “This is an outstanding example of a 6-year project that was started by an exemplar community organisation, striving to develop green energy projects to generate income for the benefit of all. The project was then seen through to its completion by a commercial developer who was as equally driven, building on the strong relationship already established through their previous engagement with the community. It’s a fantastic result for us all!”
Andrew Lyle, MD of Locogen, said: "This is a great example of how developers can partner with communities to deliver long-term green energy projects that will provide a secure revenue stream for the local community for over 50 years. The development was exceptionally challenging to deliver within a tight timeframe and everyone involved in the scheme can be proud that it has now been recognised by the industry as an exemplar community project."
Susan McKenzie, Director of Finance & Resources, Scottish Wildlife Trust said: “The Trust’s vision of a sustainable income stream delivered through a micro-hydro scheme was developed over a number of years in partnership with Coigach Community Development Company. The agreement negotiated with Locogen has freed the Trust from future risk and day-to-day management responsibilities, while allowing us to retain a percentage of the future income.
“This income is used locally to support our work within Coigach & Assynt Living Landscape. This is a unique community partnership led by the Trust, which aims to bring environmental and economic benefits to an area that is blessed with some of the most dramatic and instantly recognisable landscapes in the British Isles, and some of our rarest and most endangered habitats.”
Notes to Editor
Contact
For press enquiries please contact:
Derek McKenzie
Email: derek.mckenzie@locogen.com
Tel: 0131 555 4745
Mobile: 0754 585 6549
Further Project Information
Pictures available on request.
The project, which started in 2011, was originally a joint venture between Coigach Community Development Company (CCDC) & Scottish Wildlife Trust (SWT) with the aim of developing a ‘run of river’ hydro project near Achiltibuie, NW of Ullapool. The project achieved planning consent in 2014 and Locogen were then appointed as project managers & owner’s engineer early in 2015 to take the project through the construction phase.
Towards the end of 2015 it became clear that CCDC and SWT could not commit additional funds to the project due to outstanding property and crofting law issues and a fast approaching feed-in tariff deadline that looked likely to be missed. Keen to see the development through to its fruition, and off the back of the strong partnership established between Locogen, CCDC and SWT over the previous 12 months, Locogen agreed to enter into a shared ownership arrangement with CCDC & SWT to deliver and operate the project.
Locogen provided the capital and expertise needed to resolve the issues and build the project, whilst providing an ongoing share of revenue for the life of the scheme to CCDC & SWT. The project started construction in May 2016 and was commissioned in December 2016. It includes a Coanda screened intake, 2.4km of buried penstock over a 300m vertical drop and a twin jet Pelton turbine manufactured by Gilkes. It is predicted to generate 72.5GWh over its >50-year operational life offsetting 39,295t of CO2.
The project benefits the local community by providing a secure revenue stream for the life of the scheme. The funds, amounting to over £1m, will be reinvested in the local community via new initiatives which will ensure the ongoing sustainability and enhancement of the local area.
About Locogen
The Locogen Group is an award-winning pioneer in the renewable energy sector.
Based in Edinburgh, Scotland, the business develops its own renewable energy projects and provides premium consultancy, installation and operation services for renewable energy assets on behalf of clients and partners. Established in 2009, Locogen’s engineers, project managers, technical consultants and account managers have delivered hundreds of renewable energy projects around the UK. These projects cover solar PV, wind, hydro, anaerobic digestion, energy storage and voltage optimisation technologies.
The project, an innovative joint venture between Locogen, Coigach Community Development Company (CCDC) & Scottish Wildlife Trust (SWT) is a "run of river" hydro development project near Achiltibuie, northwest of Ullapool. It demonstrates the success of Locogen’s partnership approach and the value of renewable energy projects to local communities.
Construction of the project started in May 2016 and it was commissioned in December 2016. It is predicted to generate 72.5GWh of electricity over its 50-plus years’ operational life, offsetting 39,295 tonnes of CO2 and providing funds of more than £1 million for the local community. These funds will be reinvested in new initiatives which will ensure the ongoing sustainability and enhancement of the local area.
Ian Muir, CCDC's Chair, said: “This is an outstanding example of a 6-year project that was started by an exemplar community organisation, striving to develop green energy projects to generate income for the benefit of all. The project was then seen through to its completion by a commercial developer who was as equally driven, building on the strong relationship already established through their previous engagement with the community. It’s a fantastic result for us all!”
Andrew Lyle, MD of Locogen, said: "This is a great example of how developers can partner with communities to deliver long-term green energy projects that will provide a secure revenue stream for the local community for over 50 years. The development was exceptionally challenging to deliver within a tight timeframe and everyone involved in the scheme can be proud that it has now been recognised by the industry as an exemplar community project."
Susan McKenzie, Director of Finance & Resources, Scottish Wildlife Trust said: “The Trust’s vision of a sustainable income stream delivered through a micro-hydro scheme was developed over a number of years in partnership with Coigach Community Development Company. The agreement negotiated with Locogen has freed the Trust from future risk and day-to-day management responsibilities, while allowing us to retain a percentage of the future income.
“This income is used locally to support our work within Coigach & Assynt Living Landscape. This is a unique community partnership led by the Trust, which aims to bring environmental and economic benefits to an area that is blessed with some of the most dramatic and instantly recognisable landscapes in the British Isles, and some of our rarest and most endangered habitats.”
Notes to Editor
Contact
For press enquiries please contact:
Derek McKenzie
Email: derek.mckenzie@locogen.com
Tel: 0131 555 4745
Mobile: 0754 585 6549
Further Project Information
Pictures available on request.
The project, which started in 2011, was originally a joint venture between Coigach Community Development Company (CCDC) & Scottish Wildlife Trust (SWT) with the aim of developing a ‘run of river’ hydro project near Achiltibuie, NW of Ullapool. The project achieved planning consent in 2014 and Locogen were then appointed as project managers & owner’s engineer early in 2015 to take the project through the construction phase.
Towards the end of 2015 it became clear that CCDC and SWT could not commit additional funds to the project due to outstanding property and crofting law issues and a fast approaching feed-in tariff deadline that looked likely to be missed. Keen to see the development through to its fruition, and off the back of the strong partnership established between Locogen, CCDC and SWT over the previous 12 months, Locogen agreed to enter into a shared ownership arrangement with CCDC & SWT to deliver and operate the project.
Locogen provided the capital and expertise needed to resolve the issues and build the project, whilst providing an ongoing share of revenue for the life of the scheme to CCDC & SWT. The project started construction in May 2016 and was commissioned in December 2016. It includes a Coanda screened intake, 2.4km of buried penstock over a 300m vertical drop and a twin jet Pelton turbine manufactured by Gilkes. It is predicted to generate 72.5GWh over its >50-year operational life offsetting 39,295t of CO2.
The project benefits the local community by providing a secure revenue stream for the life of the scheme. The funds, amounting to over £1m, will be reinvested in the local community via new initiatives which will ensure the ongoing sustainability and enhancement of the local area.
About Locogen
The Locogen Group is an award-winning pioneer in the renewable energy sector.
Based in Edinburgh, Scotland, the business develops its own renewable energy projects and provides premium consultancy, installation and operation services for renewable energy assets on behalf of clients and partners. Established in 2009, Locogen’s engineers, project managers, technical consultants and account managers have delivered hundreds of renewable energy projects around the UK. These projects cover solar PV, wind, hydro, anaerobic digestion, energy storage and voltage optimisation technologies.
Contact
Locogen
Derek McKenzie
(44)131 555 4745
www.locogen.com
Derek McKenzie
(44)131 555 4745
www.locogen.com
Contact
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