The money follows an announcement of £2.5m from the public purse for regeneration across the country.
Invenergy, in association with The 9CC Group, has confirmed £400,000 advanced payment grant, to be delivered in two equal instalments, for local community projects close to its Pencloe Wind Farm. This includes money already handed out for affordable electric vehicle rental services and charging facilities, and support for organisations including New Cumnock Working Men’s Club, Glenafton FC, and New Cumnock Bowling Club.
A further £200,000 grant will then be paid next year for groups and initiatives in and around: Auchinleck; Patna; Ochiltree and Skares; New Cumnock; Netherthird; Cronberry, Logan and Lugar; Drongan, Rankinston and Stair; Dalmellington; and Cumnock. A further £400,000 will then be delivered annually over the next 35 years, funded by the wind farm profits.
‘As a long term partner to the communities we operate in, Invenergy is fully committed to the Cumnock and Doon Valley neighbourhood and we recognise that wind farm benefit funding decisions should be made collectively and democratically by those communities, for their communities,’ said Stuart Winter, Vice President and UK Country Manager at Invenergy.
‘Our discussions with The 9CC have helped us raise the bar for how developers invest in local communities,’ he continued. ‘We have proudly committed to delivering community benefits across the predicted 35 years of site operations and to providing advance funding – all index-linked to inflation. If our current application for a further 5 turbines at our existing Pencloe Wind Farm is successful, the community benefit fund will increase proportionally.’
Invenergy’s Pencloe facility includes 18 wind turbines, generating 81MW of clean energy. The operation includes a community benefit fund of £5,000 per MW, resulting in an overall budget of £14million over the 35-years in which the current project will run.
‘This fantastic agreement is testament to our collaborative engagement and hard work to establish trust and credibility across our communities and with wind farm developers – to deliver a best practice model for funding community benefit,’ said Alex Baird, Char of The 9CC Group.
‘Invenergy’s commitment to our communities goes far beyond any legal or statutory requirement and will make a huge difference both in terms of creating a lasting legacy and for funding so many of the wonderful local groups who are making a positive difference,’ Baird continued.
Image: Matt Artz / Unsplash
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