Member Article

Wind turbine secures investment

An award winning wind turbine has won funding and research money to continue into the next stage of its development. The Aerogenerator is being engineered in the North East at NaREC in Blyth. It has the potential to help the UK meet its ambitious wind energy targets and has just won a low carbon technology prize from oil major Shell.

Unlike the ‘propeller on a stick’ turbines we see today, the Aerogenerator has no tower and rotates around a ‘vertical axis’ harnessing wind energy from any direction. It has been described as looking like a cross between a glider and giant harp. Although it will work on-shore, the V-shaped rotor is designed for offshore use. Its design is intended to be capable of delivering the same power at sea as a nuclear power station on land.

The investment, from NStar Three Pillars Fund, and a Research and Development Grant from One NorthEast, will enable developers of Aerogenerator to step up research and development activities at NaREC.

Theo Bird, director of Aerogenerator, said: “It’s still early days for the project, but moving to the North East was one of the best project decisions we ever made. We are proud to be associated with the region and people of Blyth which is the project’s home.

“We are pleased to report that the region’s rich engineering heritage is very much alive and well in the renewables sector. We believe Aerogenerator can make a big impact. It’s efficient and visually attractive. The technical innovations we’ve introduced make it more robust and stable, meaning we’ll be able to build fewer, bigger turbines.”

The Three Pillars Fund has been set up to bridge the investment gap for growing high-tech businesses in the region’s three ‘pillar’ sectors: energy; health & health sciences and process industries.

Dr Amanda McMurray from NStar said: “New and renewable energy could generate up to £2 billion for the regional economy through the development of cutting edge technology like the Aerogenerator. The funding available through Three Pillars is there to take ideas like this through the development stages to achieve commercial success.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .