A very well attended meeting of the South East Energy Group was held recently at the Regency Hall, Saundersfoot. The highlight of the evening was a talk on Vertical Axis Wind Turbines given by Mario Breeze, of the New Frontier Building Control Systems. It was fascinating to hear how these designs were noise free and even at low wind speeds had significant generating capacity. Much discussion ensued regarding the financial implications of setting up these turbines - the costs varied from £17,000 for a 6 Kw turbine to £170,000 for a 100 Kw machine. Over 100 Kw horizontal turbines were, however, more efficient. A particular feature was that these turbines could be sunk in the earth without requiring a concrete foundation. This is because of the open metal structure of the supporting tower and its relatively low height. Mr. Breeze also mentioned he had a venture capital client interested in developing a small wind farm in the South Pembrokeshire area. Though generally supportive of all forms of renewable and sustainable energy generation, the SEEG was far more focused on investigating the feasibility of a community wind turbine for the South East Pembrokeshire area. All profit from such a venture could be used for the benefit of the local community, particularly to encourage energy conservation and the development of other renewable energy projects. The remainder of the evening was taken up with a discussion regarding the changing nature of the group. Though established originally by PLANED, changes there meant that future financial support would be limited. The SEEG was now going to be launched as an independent self-supporting group. It was decided to adopt a new constitution which would be presented at the next meeting. Officers for the new group (chairman, secretary and treasurer) were duly elected. The next meeting of the SEEG will be on Wednesday, July 23, in the Sun Lounge of the Regency Hall at 7 pm. The group covers the area Amroth to Manorbier and anyone interested in saving energy in the home and reducing their carbon footprint is welcome to attend.
