EDF Renewables UK has given 11 local community groups and initiatives in the Dumfries and Galloway area an early Christmas present as it announces the successful applicants for its 2024 Stranoch Wind Farm Sponsorship Fund.
In October, the leading renewable energy developer announced the Fund was open to applications from across the area as part of construction progressing at its Stranoch wind farm, located between New Luce and Barrhill.
The 20-turbine wind farm has a 102MW capacity with its electricity being bought by two businesses – BAE Systems and Tesco – to help decarbonise their portfolios, with a third to be announced in due course.
A number of local organisations are benefitting from the £20,000 annual fund, which has awarded small-scale grants to 11 groups. This includes funding for the following projects: Meet for a Heat, a safe place for senior citizens to gather for a free meal during the winter in Newton Stewart; training for a charity targeting isolation and loneliness across the area and a storage container to provide a community pantry and hot food to the community free of charge in Castle Douglas.
Part funding has also been awarded to a charity in Castle Douglas which refurbishes and redistributes IT equipment; events nights for a local youth centre in Dumfries; battery storage for a local reuse shop to make its processes more sustainable; running costs for a men’s shed in Moffat and money towards an eco friendly garden area at Barrhill Primary School.
Over the last two years EDF Renewables UK has worked closely with stakeholders and residents in around its Stranoch wind farm to prepare the roads and infrastructure ahead of construction, which began in May 2024.
This fund is being run until the point of operation when the wind farm’s Community Benefit Fund will begin. This will be worth over £510,000 per annum for local communities – totalling at least £15.3million over the course of the project’s lifetime.
Jon O’Sullivan, Director of Onshore Wind, Hydrogen and Commercial and Industrial Solar for EDF Renewables UK commented: “As a business we very much pride ourselves on working closely with local communities at every stage of the process and enabling local people to maximise the benefit from our renewable energy developments.
“We are delighted to award a share of the £20,000 to so many organisations in Dumfries and Galloway. We look forward to seeing how the money will make a difference for so many people in the area over the coming 12 months and beyond.”
