Wind Energy Planning

Micro Renewable Energy Generators Seek Higher Feed in Tariff

UK guaranteed green electricity price tariffs are creating serious interest in small scale renewable energy generation this year.

There is however a group of people not so happy about the detail of the feed in tariff proposals.

For the pioneers who installed their renewable generator before July 15th 2009 the government is offering much lower payments compared with those available to new generators. The original renewable generators will earn 9 pence (US 14 cents) per unit compared with the tariff offering up to 41.3p (US 65 cents) a unit for newly installed generators.

Excitement over Green Energy Fixed Payment Rate

The UK wind energy sector, householders and community groups have welcomed new fixed electricity payment tariffs for small scale renewable energy technologies announced today. The UK government is set to put in place the ‘feed in’ tariffs for electricity produced by renewable energy projects of up to 5 Megawatts (MW) capacity.

From 1st April this year people and companies who install renewable energy generators of 5 MW or under will receive the guaranteed payments for each kWh of green electricity they produce.

Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband said:

“The guarantee of getting an income on top of saving on energy bills will be an incentive to householders and communities wanting to make the move to low carbon living.

“The feed-in tariff will change the way householders and communities think about their future energy needs, making the payback for investment far shorter than in the past.

“It will also change the outlook for a range of industries, in particular those in the business of producing and installing small scale low carbon technology.”

Small Wind Turbine Market Expands

With fixed prices for electricity generated by small scale renewable energy on their way, are we likely to see a better range of domestic wind turbine models on the market soon?

Over the past ten years there has been a limited range of domestic scale wind turbines on the market, with disaster striking with the B&Q cheap (and ineffective) rooftop turbine. This Youtube video shows a Danish householder with a reasonable plot of land using what appears to be a much more effective stand alone Gaia wind turbine.

The turbine has a peak rated output of 11kW and is described by the manufacturer as suitable for farms, large residences, offices, small businesses and public buildings where the main aim is to reduce the amount of electricity imported. In the right locations exporting electricity is also possible. The turbine has been designed to give an optimum yield in moderate wind speeds which the manufacturer specifies as a range of between 4.5-7.5 m/s (10-12mph).

Planning Rules Change for Small -Scale Renewables

Should people need planning consent for small scale renewable energy? This is a question the UK government has been contemplating for several years.

In 2008, the Town and Country Planning Order was amended to grant permitted development rights to domestic properties for solar panels, ground source heat pumps and water source heat pumps, but not to wind turbines and air source heat pumps.

A new consultation was kicked off yesterday on Government proposals to introduce permitted development rights for small scale renewable energy and low carbon technologies for both householders and businesses. It is also looking for feedback on permitted development rights and advertisement consent for electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

Vertical Axis Wind Turbine Market Continues to Expand

Vertical axis wind turbines appear to be flavour of the year when it comes to small wind turbines. In the UK, supermarket giant Tesco has installed several “Ropatec” vertical axis wind turbines with a rated capacity of 6kW.

The latest vertical axis turbine model to come into the test arena is the new Blackhawk Tilt Rotor Wind Turbine. The turbine is being tested and monitored by researchers from the Blackhawk Project LLC at Idaho’s National Laboratory Center for Advanced Energy Studies (CAES).

UK Micro- Renewable Energy Masterclasses

With fixed prices for small scale green energy generation on their way, UK residents are starting to show some serious interest in generating their own renewable electricity.

Green electricity company Good Energy is planning an event to help people get started with their own electricity projects.

The workshop ‘Power from the People: How to Generate Renewable Energy’ is aimed at a wide ranging audience from homeowners to farmers with the objective of helping to get small scale renewable energy projects up and running.

Can our Grid System Cope with Domestic Renewable Energy?

With more people wanting to be energy self sufficient and goverments providing financial incentives to make this ideal more affordable, we are looking at a future where domestic energy generation is rolled out to the masses.

In the UK, National Grid operate the high level grid infrastructure (generally any substations, power lines or cables rated at above 132kV) and distribution network organisations operate the local grid infrastructure of 132kV and below in the different regions.

With this anticipated increase in households generating their own green electricity, so will come increasing demands to connect these individual generators to the local distribution networks. Domestic generators such as solar PV panels, micro-wind turbines, or micro-scale CHP units will have the potential to export small amounts of electricity (as little as 0.5 kW). The result will be far more complex, actively managed local electricity networks, in which power flows in different directions at different times. Ensuring that distribution operators are ready for this change represents a major challenge.

Energy Savings Trust Seeking Green Community Heroes

The Energy Savings Trust is seeking the UK’s Green Community Heroes this year to celebrate the UK’s most inspiring green community projects.

The green awards are aimed at saluting those individuals and groups who have strived to combat climate change by reducing thier community’s energy or by generating clean energy for their community.

The Energy Savings Trust is offering national recognition with a feature in Society Guardian. It says this will help the community with future promotion and bid requests. The categories include Best Rural Community Project, Best Urban Community Project, Most Innovative Project and Outstanding Contribution by An Individual. From street by street home insulation projects to community wind turbines and education about climate change, the Energy Savings Trust want to hear about it.

Wind Turbine for Swedish Apartment Block

This Reuters video is about a large property owner in Sweden who has installed a rooftop wind turbine on one of its apartment blocks. The turbine will provide 10% of the building’s energy consumption but further turbines could provide for more.

Community Renewable Energy

With both the US and UK governments making serious investments in small scale renewable energy, community projects are likely to attract keen interest over the next few years.

A range of technologies are available to both existing and new communities including wind energy, solar energy, biomass or combined heat and power and hydro- electric power.

Green Energy Web Conferences are holding a series of webconferences to exchange information about green energy solutions. The first is a 2-day community wind energy webconference comprising live presentations by more than 25 community wind specialists.

New Home Wind Turbine Energy Savings Calculator

Do you live in the UK and want to find out how much you could save on your electricity bill by installing a wind turbine?

The Carbon Trust has just launched a new Wind Yield Estimation Tool to help people thinking about installing their own wind turbine. The tool allows you to work out how much power a home wind turbine could generate, together with the cost and carbon savings.

New UK Community Renewable Energy Funding Database

The Energy Savings Trust website now has a database where you can search for grant organisations who offer financial assistance for renewable energy or energy efficiency projects in your home or local community.

The Carbon Reductions Emissions Target (CERT) came into force in the Spring of April 2008, and requires energy suppliers to take active measures to reduce the CO2 emissions from UK homes. CERT effectively results in energy companies providing grants and financial assistance towards energy efficiency measures and renewable energy for your home.

UK DIY Store Forced to Pull Wind Turbines From Shelves

People in the renewable energy industry have for some time been sceptical about the effectiveness of small -domestic scale wind turbines in urban areas. DIY store B&Q starting selling the Windsave 1KW turbine in 2006 for £1900 and at one point it reached their best selling product status in terms of value. However people who bought the product on the basis of claims that turbines could save you 30% off your electricity bill started to raise questions about their effectiveness.