Efforts To Slash Carbon Footprint Of Renewable Production

Two of the UK's leading renewable energy firms announced yesterday that they are to team up as part of a pioneering project that could serve to slash the carbon footprint of low-carbon technologies.

In what is being hailed as a world first, wind energy provider Ecotricity confirmed it is working with Cardiff-based solar cell manufacturer G24 Innovations (G24i) to install a 120-metre tall wind turbine at the company's Wentloog plant.

The company said the turbine will be up and running by November, at which point G24i will become the first firm in the world to generate green energy onsite to produce products that also make renewable energy.

"It's not just a world first, it's a small glimpse of the future, and a very exciting one – the idea that we can harness renewable energy and use that to make devices that themselves harness more renewable energy," said Dale Vince, managing director and founder of Ecotricity. "It's almost perpetual motion."

The turbine is expected to generate 5.9 million units of electricity each year for around 25 years, a chunk of which will be used onsite to power the production of G24 Innovation's lightweight Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells.

The deal represents another major coup for Ecotricity's Merchant Wind Power scheme, which has installed onsite wind turbines for businesses including Sainsbury’s, B&Q, Ford and Michelin.

It could also provide an important test case for the fast-expanding renewable energy industry, which, despite its green credentials, has been accused in the past of generating a sizable carbon footprint through energy-intensive manufacturing processes.