UK: Banks Renewables completes investigation work at Lambs Hill wind farm site

Regional employer Banks Renewables, part of The Banks Group, won approval for the Lambs Hill wind farm, to the North West of Stockton at the end of 2011, and has since been working on addressing some of the technical issues associated with the site.

As part of the next phase of the project’s implementation, a five-week programme of geological investigations has been undertaken on the Lambs Hill site which involved using small drilling rigs and an excavator in preparation for the eventual start of construction.

The four-turbine Lambs Hill Wind Farm will have an installed capacity of up to 10MW, and will also deliver a range of economic, employment, social, supply chain and environmental benefits to the local community.

A community benefits funds linked to the Lambs Hill Wind Farm will also enable Banks to work in conjunction with local people on supporting community improvement projects right through the wind farms’ 25-year lifespan that residents feel will have the greatest local impact.

Banks Renewables has established itself as one of the UK’s leading developers in the onshore wind farm sector, and has a number of completed and ongoing projects at various stages of development across the north of England and Scotland.

Phil Dyke, development director at Banks Renewables, says: “The work we carried out at the Lambs Hill site will help us finalise the details of our construction process, and will enable us to move a step closer to commencing construction.

“We still have some further work to do before we can get to that point, and will ensure the local community is kept fully up-to-date with the progress we’re making.

“In addition to generating significant amounts of renewable energy, which will make a major contribution towards the local renewables targets, the Lambs Hill wind farm will also bring a range of other benefits to the local area, from new jobs and commercial opportunities for local businesses through to funding for a range of local community improvements.

“Modern, efficient, indigenous onshore wind farms such as these are acknowledged as providing the lowest cost form of renewable energy generation, and we firmly believe they have a central role to play in the UK’s future energy mix, as well as in generating more of the energy that we all use via renewable means.