Wind farms forecast to produce power for up to 9,000 homes

Construction work on the planned wind farms at Hazlehead, north-west of Barnsley, and Marr, five miles to the west of Doncaster, will begin this month and the turbines should be up and running by the end of the year.

Three turbines will be built at Hazlehead, near Crow Edge, while four turbines will be installed at the wind farm in Marr, which is close to junction 37 of the A1 motorway.

Mark Dowdall, environment and community director at The Banks Group, said: “Banks Renewables is very pleased to have reached this stage in the wind farms’ development, and will endeavour to carry out the construction work safely, efficiently and responsibly

“We will continue to work closely with the local community to ensure everyone is kept fully up to date with the progress that is being made on site.”

Turbines for both of the schemes are being provided by the Edinburgh-based firm REpower UK.

Managing director of the company Rick Eggleston, said: “Although both these sites are in Yorkshire, the wind conditions are quite different, which is why we are supplying two different products from the same range.

“The REpower MM82 is ideal for windy locations such as the site at Hazlehead.

“The REpower MM92, with its larger rotor diameter, produces a higher yield on lower wind speed sites and so is better suited to the wind conditions at Marr wind farm.”

Banks Renewables also has two more wind farms in the pipeline for South Yorkshire.

Planning permission was granted last August for a six-turbine wind farm at Ulley, on the edge of Rotherham, despite the efforts of campaigners who launched a large-scale protest against the plans.

Protesters said the turbines, which will each stand 132m high, would have an “unacceptable” effect on the green belt landscape, would devalue local properties, would have a detrimental effect on wildlife and could distract drivers on the nearby M1 and M18 motorways.

However, the plans were first backed by Rotherham Council and later given final approval by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.

Town planners in Rotherham had lent their support, saying that the benefits of the turbines would outweigh their visual impact. Construction work in Ulley is yet to begin.

Meanwhile, Banks Renewables has also submitted a planning application to Bolsover District Council for three turbines on land at Losk Lane, to the north of Glapwell and about two miles to the east of the M1 motorway.

That application is still set to be determined.

To fund the £21m schemes at Hazlehead and Marr, Banks Renewables has made an agreement with The Co-operative Bank, which has pledged the largest investment in the renewable energy market that it has made to date.

Banks Renewables says it is now looking at that same finance model in order to fund a number of similar projects.

Neil Brown, group commercial director at The Banks Group, said: “We are committed to becoming one of the UK’s leading owner-operators of onshore wind farms, and the investment model that we have used to secure this funding could provide the template for a portfolio of future sites that we are currently progressing across the north of England and Scotland.”

James Sutcliffe, senior manager in the Co-operative Bank’s renewable energy team said: “We’re delighted to have given our backing in support of Banks Renewables’ vision for the renewable energy sector. We believe medium-scale renewables projects such as these can make a significant contribution to the country’s future energy mix and help with the transition to a low-carbon economy.”