Member Article

Solar Capital chosen as reseller for wind turbine

Solar Capital has been appointed the Yorkshire reseller for the newly launched, Swedish manufactured EC Wind 55kW turbine by distributor, UFW Ltd.

The Doncaster company is a recognised dominant player in the region, claiming a wealth of knowledge and an ambition to “bring wind energy into the community”. Proactively sourcing, funding and managing renewable energy products, it is confident that the new turbine, which has been labelled as the best-performing product in the 55kW field, will successfully extend its range.

Angus Fraser, director of Solar Capital, said: “The 55kW EC wind turbine is the ideal model to expand our portfolio. It ticked every box: a high end, category leading product from a top international manufacturer, offering a market leading warranty supported by a European Bluechip company.

“Our formula has been proven successful through our work in solar, and we now look forward to further achievements in the wind market.”

Solar Capital has investor capital available for fully funded wind turbines, so can offer land owners not necessarily seeking to purchase a financed option. At a cost of £280-300k for each installation, the average payback period is between five and seven years though this can be as low as three years on higher performing sites.

UFW secured the exclusive distribution rights to the turbine in the UK and Ireland earlier this year. Acquired by the €11 billion European giant, DCC Energy, in November 2011, it is one of UK’s leading distributors of innovative renewable energy products.

EC Wind is so confident about its new model that it is offering a seven-year warranty, the longest for any wind turbine of its size on the market. The manufacturer has also agreed to underwrite a performance guarantee on the first 20 turbines sold.

UFW’s wind business development manager, David Taylor, added: “We are delighted to be working with Solar Capital, which in our opinion outperforms other regional distributors because of its strength in sourcing renewable energy investment opportunities for fund managers, as well as providing industry-leading performance monitoring software and a national maintenance capability.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by David Gatehouse .