Good Energy acquires consented onshore wind farm

RNS Number : 3115V

Good Energy Group PLC

11 January 2013

 



11 January 2013



Good Energy Group plc

Good Energy acquires consented onshore wind farm site

Good Energy Group plc ("Good Energy" or the "Company"), owner of Good Energy Limited, the UK's leading 100% renewable electricity supplier, is pleased to announce that it has completed the acquisition of an onshore wind farm site from RWE Npower Renewables Limited, for a consideration of up to £3.0 million.

The site, located by Hampole, near Doncaster, has planning permission for the construction of four turbines. It is Good Energy's intention to construct a wind farm with a generation capacity of approximately 8.2MW.  The proposed wind farm is expected to generate around 20,000 MWh a year, nearly doubling the amount of electricity that Good Energy generates.

The project represents an important step forward in Good Energy's target to develop 110MW of new generating capacity by 2016. Owning and operating its own generation capacity will help the Company to more easily manage its wholesale power costs to deliver more stable retail prices, particularly as customer numbers increase.

Commissioning of the site is expected to take place in Q4 2013. This wind farm will become the second onshore wind farm in Good Energy's portfolio alongside the 9.2MW Delabole wind farm in North Cornwall, which was originally the UK's first commercial onshore wind farm. The Company will complete the development phase in-house and expects to reach financial close with debt-funders during H1 2013. The acquisition has been funded from the Company's existing cash reserves.

The site will be eligible for Good Energy's new Local Tariff, which gives local residents living near wind farms the opportunity to benefit from a 20% discount off Good Energy's standard electricity tariff. Good Energy will also explore with key stakeholders others ways in which the wind farm could benefit the community and local households, as part of its comprehensive approach to community engagement around new renewable energy developments.

Juliet Davenport OBE, CEO and founder of Good Energy, said:  

"As our customer numbers increase, we see the development of our own generation assets as an important way in which we can keep wholesale costs down and deliver more stable retail prices.

"Acquiring sites like this one, that have already received planning permission, brings a welcome balance to the portfolio so that we can have this site in development in 2013. We also plan to bring online some of the sites we are currently developing from scratch in 2014/2015. With that in mind, we are pleased to have reached this agreement.

"We're very excited that this latest site will be part of our new Local Tariff, and we look forward to engaging with the local community during the final development and construction process. We are particularly keen to seek their views on how the site might act as a vehicle for local investment in the area."

For further information, please contact:  

Good Energy Group plc    Juliet Davenport OBE, Chief Executive	01249 766795
N+1 Singer (Nominated Adviser & Broker)  Andrew Craig, Ben Wright	020 7496 3000.
Kreab Gavin Anderson (Financial PR Advisers) Ken Cronin, Andrew Jones	0207 074 1800.
RWE Npower Renewables Limited Rebecca Somers	01793 474276

Notes to Editors

-     Good Energy Group plc is listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange. For more information please visit: www.goodenergygroup.co.uk

-     Good Energy sources all its electricity from renewable generators. To compare the fuel mix of other suppliers please visit: www.electricityinfo.org/suppliers.php

-     Good Energy supplies over 30,000 homes and businesses across the UK

-     Good Energy also supports a pioneering community of more than 40,000 renewable generators that use wind, small-scale hydro, solar power and sustainable biomass to generate heat and power

-     In 2008, Good Energy added a Gas product to its range. It now has over 6,700 gas customers

-     Good Energy has recently won a number of awards, including:

o  Good Energy has come top in the latest Which? customer satisfaction survey for energy suppliers in 2010 and 2012

o  Juliet Davenport won PLUS markets CEO of the Year in 2009, 2010 and 2012 and Good Energy won the 2012 PLUS markets Investor Communication of the Year

o  Juliet Davenport named CEO of the Year and overall winner at People and Environment Business Awards 2012

o  Juliet Davenport named 'First Woman of Retail and Consumer' at First Women Awards 2011

 

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