A sun-bathed Rhyl seafront was the venue last Wednesday for a well-attended gathering of local community representatives, including local Vale of Clwyd MP Chris Ruane, to celebrate the launch of the North Hoyle Offshore Wind Farm Community Fund, set up by npower renewables in partnership with Denbighshire County Council and the Area Partnerships for Rhyl and Prestatyn & Meliden.
The event took place at Rhyl RNLI Lifeboat Station and included a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the official unveiling of the station's new support Land Rover donated by npower renewables.
The Community Fund, set up in conjunction with North Hoyle, will pump £60,000 (index-linked) into the communities of Rhyl and Prestatyn & Meliden every year for the 20 year life of the wind farm. The two Area Partnerships are responsible for administering the fund and will each receive an annual payment from the wind farm of £30,000 to allocate grants to local community projects.
Speaking at the launch event, Vice-Chairman of Denbighshire County Council, Councillor Neville Hughes said, "On behalf of Denbighshire County Council can I congratulate npower renewables on establishing the North Hoyle Community Fund in Rhyl and Prestatyn & Meliden. I am sure both communities will benefit enormously from this annual Fund.
I am particularly pleased that the North Hoyle Community Fund has been delivered through a partnership approach between npower renewables, the two Area Partnership Steering Groups and the County Council.
I am delighted to be attending today's launch of the Fund and I would also like to thank the local Area Partnership Steering Groups for making the difficult decisions as to who would be the recipients this time around. I am sure that many other organisations will be successful in future years."
Other attendees at the launch event included committee members representing the two Area Partnerships, representatives of local groups receiving grants from this year's community fund and staff and crew of the Rhyl RNLI lifeboat station.
RNLI Regional Fundraising Manager Richard Polden, said, "Our friends in the community are vital to our continued lifesaving role, a role which is increasing year on year. The generous gift of a Land Rover for Rhyl lifeboat station from npower renewables demonstrates the wide-ranging appreciation of our important link with the community which has provided lifeboat crew to Rhyl lifeboat station for over a century and a half."
The keys to the new Land Rover were then handed over to Rhyl Lifeboat Station's Operations Manger Ray Coltman by npower renewables' projects Operations Manager Andy Billcliff.
Andy said, "npower renewables and its predecessors have been operating renewable energy projects in Wales for almost 100 years. We work closely with local communities throughout all stages of our work, from pre-application, through to determination, during construction and throughout the operation of our schemes. North Hoyle has received tremendous support from people living in and around Rhyl and Prestatyn, and we are delighted to be able to give something back to the local communities who have embraced the project and its role in helping to combat climate change."
Chris Ruane MP said, "I am very pleased with npower renewables' policy of engaging with and becoming involved with local communities. npower renewables have made a great impact in my constituency with dozens of local projects having already benefited from the North Hoyle Community Fund. npower renewables is helping to hit Government targets for renewable energy generation, and the company's proposed Gwynt y Môr Offshore Wind Farm gives us a real opportunity to locate manufacturing and research & development bases in Wales to supply offshore wind farms around the whole of the UK."
Following the speeches, guests were invited to enjoy a buffet lunch served in the boat house and to climb aboard the station lifeboat for a guided tour of the vessel.
Information about this year's successful applicants to receive funding from the North Hoyle Offshore Community Fund can be found on Denbighshire County Council's web site at www.denbighshire.gov.uk. The next distribution of the Fund will be early next year and interested organisations are encouraged to look out for announcements in the local press etc. Anyone wishing to find out more about how to apply for a grant from the fund should contact the Strategic Policy Unit at Denbighshire County Council on 01824 70 6146 or 01824 70 6063
For further information contact:
- Sara Alan-Smith, PR Officer, npower renewables
T: 01189 59 2440
Editors Notes
- npower renewables is one of the UK's leading renewable energy companies dedicated to generating electricity using sustainable, environmentally-friendly resources. The company's operating portfolio in Wales comprises 1 offshore wind farm, 6 onshore wind farms and 6 hydroelectric schemes. In addition, npower renewables' parent company RWE npower is involved in co-firing biomass at its Aberthaw power station in South Wales.
- North Hoyle Offshore Wind Farm is the UK's first major offshore wind farm. The project was developed and is operated by npower renewables. It comprises 30 turbines with a combined maximum capacity of 60 megawatts (MW). The wind farm supplies enough clean, green electricity every year to supply the average annual needs of some 40,000 homes.
- Public attitude surveys carried out locally before and after construction of the North Hoyle Offshore Wind Farm have shown a rise in residents' support for the project from 62% to 73% now the wind farm is in place. Only 5% of residents oppose the scheme.
- Embrace the Revolution is a campaign to give a voice to the majority of people in the UK who support wind energy, uniting those in favour of wind energy. Embrace the Revolution is run by the British Wind Energy Association (BWEA), the trade and professional body for the UK wind industry. For further information please contact www.embracewind.com.
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