Valley of the green giant: How a community turbine will generate clean power and cash for local projects in North Ayrshire

What’s 110m tall with three arms and will bring in millions of pounds to boost struggling communities in North Ayrshire?

It’s a new community-owned wind turbine being built near Kilbirnie that will generate enough renewable energy to power more than 2,000 homes and plough all profits from the sale of its electricity into local projects in the Garnock Valley region.

It’s hoped the turbine will be fully operational before the end of next year, with estimates suggesting it could bring in from £6m to £10m over its expected 25-year lifespan.

Income will be reinvested back into the local area, which has high levels of deprivation, helping to improve sports and recreational facilities and initiatives aimed at improving health and well-being.

Cash will also go towards refurbishment of the historical Knox Institute building in Kilbirnie, a one-time important community hub.

The scheme is the first wholly community-owned large wind turbine in Scotland to be built without UK government subsidies.

Wind power: Final turbine takes its stand in Scotland’s largest offshore scheme at Seagreen

Studies carried out as part of the planning application found the pioneering scheme could bring in more cash for local people than the benefits from 45 existing turbines in the surrounding area.

Kilbirnie's historical Knox Institute building, once an important hub for local people, will benefit from an injection of cash from the new community-owned turbine

Construction work has now begun after community interest company Attix, set up by local charity Radio City Association, successfully secured more than £5 million of investment from backers.

Green energy investment company Thrive Renewables is putting up £4m of the funding, while responsible finance provider Social Investment Scotland has invested £1.6m as part of a blended finance package.

Local Energy Scotland is also supporting the project through planning and design with funding from the Scottish Government’s Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES).

Climate change: Should communities have power to veto new wind farms as net zero deadline looms?

Allan Wilson, former deputy minister for environment and rural development for the Scottish Government, is secretary of Radio City Association -- the North Ayrshire charity behind community interest company Attix, which is building a new community-owned turbine that will generate power and cash for local projects

Allan Wilson, secretary of Radio City Association and former deputy minister for environment and rural development for the Scottish Government, is enthusiastic about the project and its gains for residents.

“This is great news for the Garnock Valley as the turbine will secure more in community benefits for local people than all the commercially owned wind turbines visible in the area combined,” he said.

“We recommend the model to any community facing the same challenges.

“It represents a massive step forward for our Electric Valley project, which aims to promote sustainability and energy self-reliance and the investment of profits from locally sourced renewable power back into our communities.

“This will allow us to start addressing inequalities in employment, health and education created by years of neglect and absence of new investment.”

Floating offshore wind power: Why the future in Scotland is buoyant

The turbine is the latest initiative by Radio City Association, which has been working for more that 20 years on projects to help improve the lives of people in the Garnock region – a former industrial community based around steelworking, furniture factories and mills.

As well as the onshore wind turbine, Radio City Association is also developing a wider sustainability project, Electric Valley, which includes working with Scottish Water in the development of a small-scale hydro scheme.

Money raised will also be reinvested back into the local community, promoting eco-friendly and affordable community transport and energy-efficiency.

The organisation also runs a hire scheme for electric vans, cars and bikes, providing important access to transport for the high percentage of people in the region who do not have their own cars.

Giant offshore wind farm in Forth would be UK's largest and could power all Scottish homes twice over

Matthew Clayton, managing director of Thrive Renewables, added: “Scotland is a world leader in renewable energy generation, home to innovative projects that are not only helping the country to meet its own net zero goals, but setting an example for other countries to follow suit.

“We’re proud to play a role in this community energy success story – a brilliant example of passion and perseverance that will bring tangible benefits to the people living in the Garnock Valley, including a new revenue stream, local green jobs and an active role in tackling the climate emergency.”

Chris Jamieson, head of investments at Social Investment Scotland, said the Attix turbine was “a superb example of a community energy project with the potential to make a positive difference to people’s lives, while also delivering significant environmental impact through carbon reduction”.

The Scottish Government has set a target of 2GW of renewable energy to be owned by communities or locals by 2030.

Research from Energy Saving Trust has found that an estimated 908MW of community and locally owned renewable energy capacity from 26,290 installations was operational in Scotland by the end of December 2022.

How a Scottish firm is creating new uses for old wind turbine blades

This is estimated to produce 1,933GWh of renewable energy annually.

Energy minister Gillian Martin said: “The Scottish Government is committed to supporting the growth of community energy through CARES and we are proud to have provided this project with both funding and support.

“Every community project is important in helping us to achieve a just transition to a net zero future and my congratulations go to the team at Radio City Association for reaching this important milestone in what is a significant and innovative development in delivering community-owned energy.”