Windmine Personal Wind Power Generation
Windmine Personal Wind Power Generation
Have your own 11kW wind turbine generator on a managed windfarm
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An interesting new option for green-minded people has been developed by Windmine Ltd. The problems associated with mounting micro wind turbines in built up areas and in particular mounting wind turbines on dwellings are well documented. Very limited power generation, noise pollution, structural damage caused by vibration, and neighbours' complaints.
Windmine have come up with an innovative alternative. On a windy field in Essex they propose to build a windfarm. Anyone can buy a wind turbine generator and have it installed on the wind farm where it is connected directly to the national grid and professionally managed.
Remote sensing technology allows the proud owner to watch their turbine in action by receiving electricity generating data via their mobile phone or computer. The generated electricity (net of the electricity you use in your own home) is sold to the National Grid and so the wind turbine owner is paid directly into their bank account at regular intervals.
The wind turbine generators proposed for this project are likely to be Gaia Turbines generating a nominal 11kW of power from their 2-blade downwind configuration. The rotors have a diameter of 13 metres and sit on top of a 15 metre high tower. Operating life for these turbines is around 20 years.
The terms of the Windmine contract are such that you actually own the wind turbine yourself. This has the advantage that you could go to Essex and take your wind turbine elsewhere (not that you would really want to), and the disadvantage is that you are solely responsible for the costs of maintenance of your wind turbine.
The cost of each 11kW wind turbine is around £30-35,000, on top of which you would have to add maintenance costs, £50 per year ground rent, AND 5% of all the electricity your turbine generates which goes to Windmine for administrative costs. Windsave suggest that your wind turbine will return £1,750-£2,500 per year depending on weather conditions, but should generate at least 20,000 kWh of power per year.
Adding up all these figures it is apparent that in a 20-30 year operational lifetime, it is likely the wind turbine owner will struggle to reach payback - i.e. he or she will spend more money than the value of the electricity they generate. However, selling renewable obligation certificates should lead to payback and even profitability within this operational lifetime.
The initial outlay of over £30,000 is going to put off a large number of people who would be interested if they only had to invest say £3,000-5,000, however Windmine Managing Director, Paul Mines, has plans for alternative financing and ownership options in the near future.
Find out more about the Windmine project by reading this exclusive REUK.co.uk Interview with Windmine Managing Director Paul Mines.
Article Last Modified: 17:14, 11th Jan 2007Comment on this Article
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