Ovenden Moor Wind Farm | |
---|---|
Country | England |
Location | Halifax |
Coordinates | 53°46′32″N1°56′13″W / 53.77556°N 1.93694°W |
Status | Operational |
Construction began | 1992 2016 [note 1] |
Commission date | 1993 2017 |
Construction cost | £12 million |
Owner(s) | Yorkshire Wind Power Limited |
Wind farm | |
Type | Onshore |
Hub height | 370 feet (110 m) (second generation) |
Site elevation | 1,440 feet (440 m) |
Power generation | |
Make and model | Gamesa G80-2MW |
Units planned | Ten |
Units cancelled | One |
Annual net output | 49 GWh |
External links | |
Commons | Related media on Commons |
Ovenden Moor Wind Farm is a wind powered electricity generating site in England. Ovenden Moor is located north of Halifax and west of Bradford in West Yorkshire. The site was opened in 1993 with 23 turbines, but these were later removed in favour of larger turbines but with 14 fewer towers. This updated the output of the site from 9.2 MW to 22.5 MW with an expected generation lifetime of 25 years. As the turbines can be seen from some distance and the fact that they overlook the Brontë Country to the north, they have the subject of continued criticism and objections.
This moorland area of the South Pennines is mostly overlaid with peat and underlaid with sandstone that is 310 million years old. [1] The area in and around Ovenden Moor was quarried for the Rough Rock Flagstone that was used for buildings in the Halifax area. [2] There are also bands of mudstone and coal, with coal being worked historically in the area (east of Ovenden Moor) [3] even though the seams were very narrow by commercial colliery standards. [4]
The site was first proposed as a wind farm in the early 1990s and development took place soon after government approval was granted in 1992. [5] At a cost of £10.6 million, 23 turbines were erected at 1,440 feet (440 m) above sea level in a staggered V-shape to take advantage of the prevailing south-westerly wind. [6] The site first started generating power in June 1993. [5] The first generation wind turbines were designed and built by Vestas with a height of 166 feet (51 m) and would each generate 400 kWh [7] with the whole site generating 9.2 MWh in total. [8] The turbines on the site would start generating power at 11 miles per hour (18 km/h) and would reach their optimum power generation at 27 miles per hour (43 km/h). [9]
The power output from the site was fed via a sub-surface 11 kilovolt cable eastwards into the National Grid near to the village of Denholme. [10] The first generation site provided enough power for 5,600 homes [11] and stopped over 10,000 tonnes (11,000 tons) of carbon dioxide and over 90 tonnes (99 tons) of sulphur dioxide being released into the atmosphere. [12]
The development of the wind farm included many groundworks to locate the foundations in the peat that overlies the bedrock. [note 2] [13] During the building phase, a crack in the bedrock, as a result of the earthworks, diverted a watercourse and the cabling works caused the peat to dry out. This has been cited by opponents of wind farm schemes across the United Kingdom when challenging the application process at the approvals stage. [14] Access from the local roads onto the moorland was developed using a special floating road of interwoven plastic grids. This was one of the first uses of this style of access to prevent degradation of the peat underlying the track of the road. [15] The wind farm was temporarily switched off in late April and early May 2010 due to an extensive moor fire that had to be tackled by the West Yorkshire Fire Service. [16]
Funding for the wind farm was supplied partly from the European Commission's Thermie Programme which was designed to help start renewable energy projects. [17] The Commission funded €2 million of the final €9.1 million towards the project. The builders of the wind farm were also required to report back to the EU to outlay the inherent planning, cost, infrastructure and operating problems of a windfarm on high moorland. [18]
The old turbines and towers were decommissioned by March 2015 [19] and were replaced in 2016 by a £12 million scheme of 370 ft (110 m) tall newer generation units which are capable of generating 2.5 MWh each. [20] The total power output of the new wind farm is 22.5 MW which meant that only four turbines need to be erected to supplant the power of the turbines they were replacing. [21] Spanish company Gamesa had won the contract and supplied nine of its G80 (2MW) turbines. [22] Planning was initially submitted for ten turbines in 2008, but was reformed and re-submitted in 2012 with one less turbine, downrating the power output from 25 MW to 22.5 MW. [19] The site is estimated to be generating electricity 95% of the time [10] and is believed to be able to generate 49 GWh per year (enough to supply over 11,000 homes) and would save over 21,000 tonnes (23,000 tons) of carbon dioxide being released into the environment over a year. [23] Ovenden Moor Repower started generating in early 2017, despite weather related delays in the construction of the site [24] and is expected to be generating electricity for 25 years. [25]
The older turbines suffered from a lower generation outputs due to wind strength, whereas the newer turbines have a higher rated resistance to damage from strong winds. The older turbines would automatically shut off when the wind was blowing above 56 miles per hour (90 km/h), although this was not enough to prevent damage as on at least one occasion, the sails of some of the turbines were ripped off in strong winds. [26] The newer turbines have been designed to withstand wind speeds of up to 150 miles per hour (240 km/h), a far higher threshold than the previous ones. [9]
The generating company is Yorkshire Wind Power Limited who operate two other wind farms at Royd Moor near to Penistone in South Yorkshire and Out Newton near to Easington in the East Riding of Yorkshire. [27] The first generation venture was a 50/50 joint enterprise between Yorkshire Water and Yorkshire Electricity. [12] Yorkshire Water sold their stake in the business in May 2002 to Energy Powers Resources. [28] Yorkshire Wind Power is now a joint 50/50 enterprise between E.ON Climate and Renewables and Energy Power Resources Ltd, [29] although the land is still owned by Yorkshire Water. [30] Operation of the wind farm is controlled remotely from E.ON's offices in Coventry in the West Midlands. [10]
The wind farm has been praised but has mostly been criticised by local people and also the local MP. [31] [32] Whilst campaigners against the wind farm recognise that it produces Low-carbon energy, [note 3] [33] [34] it was noted that the wind farm had only been operating for 31% of the time in 2005 and only 25% of the time in 2009. [35] [36] The proximity to Haworth had raised objections by The Bronte Society and the local population that the turbines were despoiling the area and would have a negative effect on tourism to the region. [37] This was highlighted by local people when the plans for the new height of the wind turbines was being unveiled, with comments stating that their visibility will be further than ever before and attracting the view that it will despoil a huge swathe of Yorkshire, [38] (on a clear day, the turbines will be able to be seen from 35 miles (56 km) away). [20]
The location of the site is 4 miles (6 km) north of Halifax, 7 miles (12 km) west of Bradford, 3 miles (5 km) south of Haworth [39] [40] and the area it overlooks to the north is designated as Brontë Country. [41] The site is closest to the village of Ogden and Ogden Reservoir (2 miles (2.5 km) to the south east), but the high ground it occupies is known as Ovenden Moor. [42] The site straddles the watershed between the waters that feed Warley Reservoir to the west, the Worth Valley to the north, the Calder Valley to the south, and Airedale and the Upper Bradford district to the east. [43]
The United Kingdom is the best location for wind power in Europe and one of the best in the world. By 2023, the UK had over 11 thousand wind turbines with a total installed capacity of 28 gigawatts (GW): 14 GW onshore and 14 GW offshore, the sixth largest capacity of any country. Wind power generated about 25% of UK electricity, having surpassed coal in 2016 and nuclear in 2018. It is the largest source of renewable electricity in the UK.
Ogden in West Yorkshire, England, is a small hamlet 5.0 miles (8 km) north of Halifax. The hamlet falls within the Calderdale Ward of Illingworth and Mixenden. Its most recognisable landmarks are Ovenden Moor wind farm, which can be seen from as far as 35 miles (56 km) away on a clear day, a golf course, which offers views of the surrounding moorland; and Ogden reservoir, around which are footpaths for visitors to walk and view the local wildlife.
Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy S.A., formerly Gamesa Corporación Tecnológica S.A. and Grupo Auxiliar Metalúrgico S.A., is a Spanish-German wind engineering company based in Zamudio, Biscay, Spain. In Spain, the company has two other main sites one in Madrid and the other one in Sarriguren (Navarre). The Services Commercial Office is located in the Parque de la Innovación de Navarra in Sarriguren. It manufactures wind turbines and provides onshore and offshore wind services. It is the world's second largest wind turbine manufacturer.
Te Rere Hau is a wind farm owned and operated by New Zealand Windfarms Ltd. It is situated on the Tararua Ranges, approximately 11 km east of Palmerston North in New Zealand.
Wind power is the fastest-growing renewable energy technology in Scotland, with 11,482 megawatts (MW) of installed wind power capacity by Q1 2023. This included 9,316 MW from onshore wind in Scotland and 2,166 MW of offshore wind generators.
Gwynt y Môr is a 576-megawatt (MW) offshore wind farm located off the coast of Wales and is the fifth largest operating offshore windfarm in the world. The farm has 160 wind turbines of 150 metres (490 ft) tip height above mean sea level.
As of 2021 The island of Ireland has 5,585 megawatt and the Republic of Ireland has 4,309 MW of installed wind power nameplate capacity, the third highest per capita in the world. In 2020 wind turbines generated 36.3% of Ireland's electrical demand, one of the highest wind power penetrations in the world.
Senvion S.A. was a German wind turbine manufacturer founded in 2001 in Germany, majority owned by a private equity firm. Senvion as REpower Systems, as it was initially called, was established in 2001 through the merger of German wind companies: HSW, the engineering consultancy Pro+Pro, the wind turbine manufacturer BWU and Jacobs Energie; and since April 2015 Centerbridge Partners. It was under the ownership of Suzlon, an India wind turbine manufacturer, from 2007 to 2015.
Whitelee Wind Farm is a windfarm on the Eaglesham moor in Scotland. The main visitor centre is located in East Renfrewshire, but the majority of turbines are located in East Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire. It is the largest on-shore wind farm in the United Kingdom with 215 Siemens and Alstom wind turbines and a total capacity of 539 megawatts (MW), with the average of 2.5 MW per turbine. Whitelee was developed and is operated by ScottishPower Renewables, which is part of the Spanish company Iberdrola.
The Mount Mercer Wind Farm is located at Mount Mercer approximately 30 kilometres south of Ballarat in Western Victoria on 2600ha. The wind farm consists of 64 REpower MM92 wind turbines, giving a total installed capacity of 131 MW. It is expected to generate approximately 395,000 megawatt hours (MWh) of electricity each year which could power approximately 74,000 households and result in a reduction of some 510,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide.
The environmental impact of electricity generation from wind power is minor when compared to that of fossil fuel power. Wind turbines have some of the lowest global warming potential per unit of electricity generated: far less greenhouse gas is emitted than for the average unit of electricity, so wind power helps limit climate change. Wind power consumes no fuel, and emits no air pollution, unlike fossil fuel power sources. The energy consumed to manufacture and transport the materials used to build a wind power plant is equal to the new energy produced by the plant within a few months.
Scout Moor Wind Farm is the second largest onshore wind farm in England. The wind farm, which was built for Peel Wind Power Ltd, produces electricity from 26 Nordex N80 wind turbines. It has a total nameplate capacity of 65 MW of electricity, providing 154,000 MW·h per year; enough to serve the average needs of 40,000 homes. The site occupies 1,347 acres (545 ha) of open moorland between Edenfield, Rawtenstall and Rochdale, and is split between the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale in northern Greater Manchester and the Borough of Rossendale in south-eastern Lancashire. The turbines are visible from as far away as south Manchester, 15–20 miles (24–32 km) away.
Hoosier Wind Farm is a wind farm in Benton County, Indiana. It consists of 53 REpower 2 MW wind turbines, for a total nameplate capacity of 106 MW. The enXco subsidiary of EDF Energies Nouvelles built the wind farm, with Mortenson Construction's Renewable Energy Group as the subcontractor. Indianapolis Power & Light (IPL) has a 20-year contract to purchase and distribute the wind farm's output.
REG WindPower is a renewable energy company, in the United Kingdom.
Askam and Ireleth Wind Farm is a group of 7 turbines located two kilometers east of the village Askam and Ireleth, on the southern slopes of Hare Slack Hill. Work on the turbines started in late 1998, and the wind farm took eight months to complete. It first generated energy in July, 1999.
Dogger Bank Wind Farm is a group of offshore wind farms under construction 125 to 290 kilometres off the east coast of Yorkshire, England in the North Sea. It was developed by the Forewind consortium, with three phases envisioned - first phase, second phase and third phase. In 2015 the third phase was abandoned, while the first and second phases were granted consent. It is expected that the Dogger Bank development will consist of four offshore wind farms, each with a capacity of up to 1.2 GW, creating a combined capacity of 4.8 GW.
Kilgallioch Wind Farm is a 96 turbine wind farm in South Ayrshire, Scotland with a total capacity of up to 239 megawatts (MW). Consent granted by the Scottish Government in February 2013 with construction starting in 2015 and completed in 2017. The wind farm contains 70 km of internal tracks, and a surface area of roughly 32 km2.
Fraisthorpe Wind Farm is a wind power generating site located in the village of Fraisthorpe in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The site is just 2 miles (3.2 km) south of Bridlington and 40 miles (64 km) east of York. It was granted full planning permission in early 2015 when the Ministry of Defence dropped their objection to the site. This was despite the apparent vocal opposition by local people and councillors. It started generating electricity in August 2016.
Knabs Ridge Wind Farm is an electricity generating site just south of the A59 road near to Felliscliffe, Kettlesing, North Yorkshire, England. It was the first wind farm to be built in North Yorkshire in over 15 years, and was believed to be the first time that civilian air traffic was considered in the planning permission process.