Households invest in wind farms to combat rising bills

HOUSEHOLDS are rushing to invest in onshore wind turbines in an effort to subsidise rising bills.

As gas and electricity prices continue to soar, community energy schemes are becoming increasingly popular in what could be a model for its further rollout across the country.

One such crowdfunding scheme is run by Ripple Energy, which allows households to buy into a wind farm project and receive payments in return when it starts producing electricity.

Sarah Merrick, the founder of Ripple, says it has had an increase in interest since mid-March, as people try to soften the effect of the energy crisis.

Its first project, a single turbine in South Wales, went live last month, and it is still accepting investors for their next project, an eight-turbine farm in Scotland.

“For the first wind farm it took about 14 months to get 900 people involved,” she said. “In just seven months, we’ve now got over 4,000 for the next one.”

Household savings are predicted to be around 25 per cent of the electricity bill if owners invest the maximum amount. The savings for investors in the first wind farm have doubled as a result of the energy crisis, which this month caused bills to rise by 50 per cent.

Investors can buy as little as a £25 share in the wind farm, while the maximum will depend on their own household energy usage.

A household that had invested enough to cover its entire usage, around £1,800, can expect to make back £275 this year from the electricity generated – more than double the initial estimate of £130.

The Government dropped plans in its energy strategy for a tripling of onshore wind by 2035, which would have been accompanied by a relaxing of planning laws across the country, after a backlash from Tory MPs.

Instead, it promised a limited number of trials in which households can be given benefits including lower energy bills in exchange for agreeing to host turbines in the local area.

Ripple investors do not have to live near their wind farm, but the model could be used to give priority to those who do, and boost community support, said Ms Merrick.