Member Article

Work begins on £17.5m wind farm near Darlington

Contractor Hall Construction Services has begun work on Banks Renewables’ new, £17.5m wind farm near Darlington.

The Moor House wind farm, located on land to the north east of Barmpton, will be the ninth onshore wind farm that Banks Renewables has built, and it is expected to begin generating clean green energy early in 2018.

Rushyford-based Hall Construction has worked with the Banks Group on a number of previous renewable energy, property development and surface mining schemes, including wind farms in Cumbria, Leeds and Barnsley, and is now taking the lead on appointing and managing a number of suppliers to this latest project.

Contracts worth up to £4.5m are now going out to tender to local firms in relation to different elements of the wind farm’s development, including construction, security, accommodation and catering, and up to 30 local contractors will be working on the Moor House site at any given time.

Stephen Bromley, business development manager at Hall Construction Services Ltd, said: “It is good for our company to be working with the Banks Group again and we look forward to delivering the Balance of Plant works and acting as Principal Contractor.”

Lewis Stokes, community relations manager at The Banks Group, added: “We’re very pleased to be extending our relationship with the Hall Construction team - a fellow County Durham-based firm - through this latest onshore wind scheme.

“The Moor House wind farm will bring direct employment, economic and supply chain benefits to the area in which it is being built, and will also have a substantial long-term impact on the facilities available for local people through the community fund that will be linked to the clean, green electricity that it generates.”