Reaseheath’s Equestrian Centre could benefit from a new proposal to generate clean, green energy from a hydroelectric scheme on the River Weaver.
Nantwich Mill Community Energy Company, a not-for-profit community benefit organisation, has been awarded £100,000 by the North West Energy Hub’s Rural Community Energy Fund and plans to use the funding to deliver hydroelectric generation schemes at Beambridge sluice and at the Mill Island in central Nantwich.
Provided the scheme receives approval, Reaseheath College is planning to tap into the energy produced by the hydro generator at Beambridge sluice and will use it to power some of the facilities at our Equestrian Centre which is a short distance away. Property company Carlton Holdings is interested in using energy generated at Mill Island.
Renewable energy development experts Locogen and Derwent Hydro are developing detailed plans to meet the legal requirements for planning and build, and Sharenergy will manage a community share issue once the project comes on line.
The project has support in principal from Nantwich Town Council and Cheshire East Council. Similar projects are already operating locally including Congleton Community Hydro, which is generating energy and income for its community.
In addition to Reaseheath College, the newly formed Nantwich Mill Community Energy Company is supported by Sustainable Nantwich, The Rotary Club of Crewe and Nantwich Weaver and local business leaders and community champions.
The company is led by a team of local volunteers with backgrounds in engineering, construction, business, agriculture, education, wildlife and the environment. Assistant Principal Iain Clarke (Land-based and Sustainability) is a Director and project patrons are environmentalist and writer Sir Jonathon Porritt CBE and Nantwich resident and international music star Thea Gilmore.
Iain has supported the hydroelectric project since it was first proposed and also believes that Reaseheath College can become a key player within the Nantwich community by championing sustainability and the move to halt climate change.
He said: “As a leading land based college, we are committed through our sustainability strategy to delivering leading edge technical education which has sustainability embedded at its core. This will ensure that all our students have an informed understanding of green skills development and the consequences of human action on global climate change.
“We strive as a college to lead by example, both within the industries we serve and within our local community, and the Nantwich Mill Community Energy Company is the perfect vehicle to support us in this aim. We are all equally committed to making Nantwich a centre of environmental expertise and technical excellence.”
The Nantwich Mill Community Energy Company has future plans which could include installing solar panels on commercial and community properties. The energy produced would be sold back to the organisations involved at a discounted rate. This could potentially involve some of the many buildings and fields at Reaseheath.
Find out more on the Nantwich Mill Community Energy Company website or email info@nmce.co.uk
