Work is set to start on the £50 million Little Cheyne Court Wind Farm - the most powerful onshore wind farm in the south of England.

In a year, the 26 turbines on Romney Marsh will generate clean electricity equivalent to the annual electricity demand of three quarters of the homes in the Shepway District Council area.

The wind farm will make a valuable contribution to the south east target of 20% of electricity to be generated by renewable energy by 2020.

Construction will commence five years after the wind farm proposals were first unveiled by renewable energy company, npower renewables.

"We are delighted that work will soon get underway," said npower renewables' Regional Development Manager Simon Holt. "Little Cheyne Court will be a landmark project for Kent, the south east and the UK. It will be the most powerful onshore wind farm in the south of England and every year will offset the release of thousands of tonnes of carbon dioxide, making a valuable contribution to the fight against climate change."

Pre-construction ground surveys have begun on site and, subject to discharging final planning conditions, full construction is planned to commence this summer. The first turbine is scheduled for delivery in May 2008 with electricity generation expected to begin later on that year.

A habitat management group, which includes representatives from English Nature and the RSPB, has been established, whilst a community liaison group, made up of local residents, will be formed shortly.

"We will work closely with all parties in the local area to ensure that the building of the wind farm causes as little disruption as possible," added Mr Holt. "If people experience any problems we want them to contact us so that we can reach solutions together. To this end, we have set up a 24-hour phone line, as well as a dedicated email address, so that people can contact us directly."

Materials for the project will be delivered to site via a new access track from the A259. Long loads, such as the turbine blades, will come from Junction 10 of the M20, down the A2070 before picking up the A259 at Brenzett.

Deliveries will be sensitively managed in conjunction with the police to keep disturbance and delay to a minimum.

Power from the wind farm will feed into a switch-station at Appledore, via an underground cable from the site.

Once Little Cheyne Court is fully operational a community benefits package, worth £60,000 a year over the life of the project, will be established.

Peter Hobbs, Chief Executive of Channel Chamber of Commerce said, "Little Cheyne Court Wind Farm is going to give a much needed boost to the local economy. In addition to the valuable new jobs the wind farm creates we also welcome the opportunities for local contractors to be involved during the construction stage.

"From evidence elsewhere in the UK, this state-of-the-art wind farm is also likely to become an important visitor attraction thereby enhancing tourism in the area. Channel Chamber and our partners very much look forward to working with npower renewables to see how this can be encouraged and managed effectively."

Further information about Little Cheyne Court can be found at www.npower-renewables.com/littlecheynecourt. Anyone who would like to get in touch with npower renewables, please call the community phone line on 08000 193243, or email lcc@npower-renewables.com.

For further press information, please contact:

Michael Pullan, npower renewables
Tel: 01793 892053

Philip Jones or Stuart Disbrey, Maxim PR & Marketing
Tel: 01892 513 033

Editors Notes:

npower renewables is one of the UK's leading renewable energy companies, dedicated to generating electricity using sustainable, environmentally-friendly resources. It has a wide ranging portfolio that includes both onshore and offshore wind farms, hydro plant and co-firing biomass operated through our parent company, RWE npower.

Utilising these natural resources provides significant sources of power for the UK's present and future electricity needs.

Through our existing projects and those in development, we are already working in close partnership with communities and companies around the UK. In addition, through the npower Juice Fund, we are involved in research to harness the power of waves and tides - another source of clean, sustainable electricity generation.

As Government policy drives the UK towards a target of supplying 10% of electricity from renewables by 2010, and 15% by 2015, we will be at the forefront of realising this aim.

back

top