Airtricity presents £25,000 to local community projects in Tyrone and Fermanagh on Global Wind Day

Monday, Jun 22, 2009

Airtricity, the renewable energy development division of Scottish and Southern Energy, has presented £25,000 to local community groups in Tyrone and Fermanagh from its 2009 Community Funds for wind farms in the region. The presentations were made in association with The Fermanagh Trust, Fermanagh's Community Foundation.

To celebrate the contribution, cheques have been presented today (Monday 15th June 2009) to recipients from the Bessy Bell Community Fund at a presentation ceremony hosted by Airtricity. The presentation marks Airtricity’s first annual contribution from the Bessy Bell Community Fund and coincides with Global Wind Day. Global Wind Day promotes wind energy as a clean, infinite, no‐fuel energy source.

This year, Airtricity has made grant awards to a total 30 community based projects within 10km of their wind farms at Tappaghan near Lack in Co. Fermanagh, at Bin Mountain near Castlederg and at Bessy Bell near Mountjoy, Omagh, in Co. Tyrone.

This is the fourth year of the awards for Tappaghan Wind Farm, the second year for Bin Mountain Wind Farm and the first year for Bessy Bell Wind Farm which became operational in 2008. Under the scheme Airtricity donates £1,000 per year per turbine to local projects.

This donation means that Airtricity has donated £70,000 to local community projects in Tyrone and Fermanagh from these three funds to date.

Payments by Airtricity under the Community Fund will continue to increase over the coming years following the addition of six new turbines at Tappaghan Extension in Fermanagh, and from the development of the new Slieve Divena Wind Farm at Ballygawley. Over £1 million pounds will be paid over 25 years, the expected life of the wind farms, to community projects in Tyrone and Fermanagh from these wind farms alone.

In excess of £215 million will be invested by Airtricity into the region’s rural economy over the next 25 years through the development of wind generation projects in the area, including an investment of £67.2 million into the provision of local services, projects and jobs in the community. This investment makes Airtricity the largest net contributor of any renewable energy company to the Tyrone and Fermanagh region.

Gordon Kyle, Northern Ireland Planning Manager, Airtricity, commented:

“Airtricity’s direct and indirect financial investment into the rural economy in which it operates is helping to secure the future of families and communities across County Tyrone, anchoring jobs in the region, and stemming the drain of families and workers from Tyrone’s rural heartland at this critical time.

“While renewable energy investment brings definite economic benefits to Northern Ireland, and to Tyrone and Fermanagh in particular, Airtricity believe that the communities surrounding our wind farms must also see the benefit of each wind farm in their locality. In addition to the revenue generated through rates payments to local authorities, through lease rentals to local community landowners, and through direct and indirect employment, Airtricity’s local community fund specifically benefits the communities adjacent to each wind

farm and is our way of contributing over the life time of the wind farm to the future sustainable development of the area.”

Over 60 groups applied to Airtricity for funding under the 2009 Community Fund for Tappaghan, Bin Mountain and Bessy Bell. Each application was independently adjudicated by an expert panel from The Fermanagh Trust, chaired by Director Lauri McCusker, and grants were awarded to projects which demonstrated a significant environmental and/or community benefit to the local area.

Funding awards to a selection of diverse and innovative schemes ranged from £100 to £3,000.

A selection of the projects benefiting from the 2009 Community Fund include:

• the purchase of new equipment for Ederney/Lack Indoor Bowls Club and Ederney Amateur Boxing Club

• the provision of storage facilities at Colaghty Church Hall for use by the many rural groups in the area

• improvements by Douglas Bridge Cross Community Association of the local

community hall

• and the provision of safety fencing along a stream at Dergview Football Club, among many others.

Applications for the 2010 Community Fund will open in April of next year and every year thereafter for the life time of the wind farm.

Sourc: Airtricity