European

The concept of community involvement rather than private finance is common practice across Europe, the largest example being the 40MW offshore wind farm, Middlegrunden in Denmark. Just 2km outside Copenhagen harbour there are twenty 2MW turbines that were installed by Middlegrunden Energy Co-operative a partnership between 8,500 share members and the utility company Copenhagen Energy. In Denmark 2,465MW, or 14% of electricity consumption, is from wind power. Of this 58% is owned by individuals or farmers, 26% by co-operatives and 15% by power utilities.

Similarly in 2001 Germany had one third of the worlds installed wind power capacity or 8,754MW. Of this 90% is owned by private citizens and more than 200,000 people are involved in co-operative programs. Wind turbine co-operatives facilitate local ownership and involvement, contributed to broad public support for projects and reduced the NIMBY effect. When offered, community ownership is not only desirable but taps into a significant equity source for project finance.

For further information on promoting local development of renewable energy and energy efficiency in Europe log onto Predac  or download this dti study tour summary.