UK - Single wind turbines springing up across the country

Following in the footsteps of car manufacturer Ford and renewable energy developer Renewable Energy Systems (RES) Group, a Reading business park is the latest to have its own wind turbine. Installation of the 2 megawatt (MW) turbine, located just off the M4 motorway, was completed on the 13th of November. The GreenPark turbine is one of the largest of land based turbines in the country and once operation starts later this week, it is expected to generate 4.5 million kilowatt hours (kWh) of green electricity every year – enough to power 1,500 homes and businesses. The GreenPark turbine is a joint venture between electricity supplier Ecotricity and Prudential Property Investment Managers Ltd (PruPIM).
Dale Vince OBE, founder of Ecotricity, commented: "There are many myths about what it takes for a business to become truly green, and our GreenPark project will be an important example for other organisations, leaving the arguments against dead in the water. Coming hot on the heels of our merchant wind projects with Sainsbury’s, Ford, the Co-op, Michelin and Manchester City Football Club, now the Prudential will also have peace of mind knowing they’re a part of a growing movement to do something about climate change."
Single wind turbines are an ideal way to bring on-site power straight to where it’s needed. Other projects include for instance a 2.57 MW turbine at Ness Point, Lowestoft in Suffolk; 1.5 and 1.8 MW turbines at the Eco Tech Centre in Swaffham, Norfolk; and a 2 MW turbine at Longhill in Fenland, Cambridgeshire. One of the first businesses to have its own wind turbine is the RES Group, which installed a 225 kilowatt (kW) wind turbine in November 2003. The second-hand turbine is part of RES Group’s award-winning zero-emissions headquarters in Kings Langley, Hertfordshire, and can be seen by millions of motorists each year who travel on the M25. In recognition of their achievements in sustainable development, RES Group won the Queen's Awards for Enterprise this year.