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Fenland Wind Project Ready to Start: April 2006 Contracts have been awarded for the construction of Ransonmoor Wind Farm in Cambridgeshire which will commence in June 2006. EcoGen are pleased to announce that financing is complete and contracts secured for the construction of the 6MW Ransonmoor windfarm on actively farmed arable land in the Cambridgeshire fenlands. The project itself consists of three Gamesa G80 wind turbines on 67 metre towers with a rotor diameter of 80 metres. The electricity to be generated is equivalent to that consumed by approximately 3,350 homes and the project will contribute savings in CO2 emissions of 271,200 tonnes over a 20 year project lifetime. Work on the £6m. project will commence this summer with electricity generation starting in Spring 2007. Dean and Dyball are the main contractors and Econnect the electrical sub-contractors for the project. EcoGen has undertaken the development on behalf of Fenpower Limited, itself a joint venture between EcoGen and the landowners and EcoGen directors Tim Kirby and Austen Hamilton have handled the contractual arrangements for construction and financing. The project is the first wind farm investment completed by Ventus Venture Capital Trust plc and a first in terms of small company project financed split contracts. The Ventus fund is managed by Climate Change Capital. Tim Kirby, MD of EcoGen, has been quoted as saying “We are pleased to be collaborating with Ventus and Climate Change Capital in their plans for the financing of small scale UK wind power.“ Ventus will be providing equity and mezzanine finance, whilst Alliance and Leicester will provide the main debt finance. EcoGen has worked closely on the Ransonmoor project with Ben Lundie, Katie Ashworth and Gavin Poole, the specialist energy team at solicitors Follett Stock. Their commitment and enthusiasm has been as valuable as their expertise in completing all the various aspects of the deal. Ben said “We enjoyed working with EcoGen on the Fenpower transaction – the innovative financing structure has pushed the boundaries for financing small renewables projects.” EcoGen would also like to thank Natural Power for their support as independent engineers to the project. Tim Kirby also commented that “EcoGen hope that Ransonmoor will provide a model for other landowner and community led projects.” Steve Read from Climate Change Capital said “We are delighted to be working with EcoGen and Fenpower on the Ransonmoor scheme. We would also like to express our thanks to all parties involved in the transaction for their efforts in completing the transaction.” Duncan Boughton, landowner at Ransonmoor Farm commented today: “I was pleased that my family were able to work with EcoGen on this pioneering way of wind farm development. As a hard pressed arable farmer the chance to develop the wind farm will provide much needed revenue for a generation and proves there is a real opportunity for farmers to become involved and increase their returns other than by purely renting out land to the large power generators. From now onwards we have a new diversified crop; we shall be FARMING THE WIND.” Ranson Moor finances near close!!: December 2005 EcoGen Projects Ltd is excited to announce that the fundamental terms of investment for the Ransonmoor wind cluster have been agreed between Fenpower Ltd and Ventus Venture Capital Trust plc. EcoGen is a partner in the company developing the project, Fenpower Ltd. Ventus Venture Capital Trust plc is an investment trust developed specifically to support small scale onshore wind power projects. The Ventus trust fund is a new concept in supporting the smaller project. This structure of investment in projects to aid financing suceeds in breaking down some of the difficulties of raising finance for projects at the community level. Tim Kirby of EcoGen Projects Ltd has been quoted as saying: 'We are pleased to collaborate with Ventus in their new plans for small scale UK wind power. They have a very exciting concept which will do much to support the community angle and the development of other projects like Ranson Moor.' Roads upgraded at Ranson Moor: May 2005 Local contractors TH Hardy and CR Rawlings of Moulton Austendyke, Lincolnshire have completed the upgrade of existing access roads for construction of the new turbines. Peaty top soil was removed by JCB driver Charlie Rate to widen approximately 600 metres of road. Rubble and planings were then laid over the sub soil to create splays and turning areas, and consolidated to a depth of no more than 350 mm. The brick hardcore was supplied by local company PJ Thory.
Ranson Moor site investigation gets underway: December 2004 A ground investigation of the Ranson Moor site was carried out earlier this year by Scott Wilson Oceans, and comprised of cable percussion, rotary drilled boreholes and laboratory testing. The report on the soil mechanics of the site is now in.
Planning permission granted: December 2003 The planning application for Ranson Moor was successfully approved in December 2003 and the project has now moved on to the next stage. A meterolotical mast has been put up, to further improve the predicted accuracy of energy production measure, and site ground investigations are also underway. The proposed wind cluster at Ranson Moor Farm is situated near Doddington to the south west of March in Cambridgeshire. It is being developed by Fenpower Ltd. a company set up by the local land owner specifically for this purpose. It is in keeping with the current trend of decentralising power generation from a few large scale generating schemes to a larger number of smaller less intrusive ones spread throughout the country. The latest turbine technology makes electricity generation economically viable from more modest wind resources. The electricity will be sold directly to an electricity distribution company and will assist them to meet their quota of buying 10% of their electricity from renewable sources as required by Government. The proposal was over a year in the scoping stage of planning in part to ensure that concerns over danger to swans and other waterfowl were addressed. EcoGen were in consultation with English Nature, R.S.P.B. and the Wildlife Trust during this time. On 5th December 2001 EcoGen and Fenpower held a public open day in Doddington to inform the public about the project. Read comments written in the visitors book on the Open Days. View or download a summary of the Ranson Moor Environmental Statement which was published in July 2003
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