We're proud of the commitment our customers have towards green energy, and each year, on behalf of every one of our Juice customers, we donate £10 into a Fund to support renewable projects. Thanks to your support, since launch, the Juice fund has been used to invest more than £2m towards supporting the development of new renewable energy technologies, helping to reduce our dependence on carbon-polluting fossil fuels.
Here are some of the fantastic projects the Juice Fund has helped to develop, which without your support, wouldn't have been possible
Following a £195,000 investment from the Juice Fund for a feasibility study back in 2005, the UK's first wave farm is now nearing completion, in the South West of England. Before devices are installed for the permanent capture of wave energy, a test site will go live this summer. Called Wave Hub, it will be the world's largest wave energy test facility, housing a grid-connected socket on the seabed, ten miles off the coast of Cornwall, to which wave power devices can be connected and their performance evaluated.
"We're on course for deployment this summer and extensive testing will take place before we welcome our first wave energy devices at Wave Hub, which we expect in 2011," explains Guy Lavender, Wave Hub's general manager at the South West Regional Development Agency. "After seven years of planning it’s hugely satisfying to see the cable and hub actually taking shape."
In 2007, the Juice Fund donated £60,000 to Green Ocean Energy to help the company develop a device to harness energy from both waves and wind simultaneously. The Aberdeen-based business has now successfully produced a wave power machine – called the Wave Treader – which uniquely attaches to an offshore wind turbine, thereby giving combined wind and wave power from one installation. A full-size prototype is expected to be ready for testing later this year.
"The support we have received from npower through the Juice Fund has enabled us to take a huge step forward in preparing the device for widespread use in the offshore environment," says Green Ocean Energy managing director George Smith. "The Wave Treader has the potential to significantly increase sustainable energy generation both in the UK and around the globe. If we're going to reach the Government's target of generating 20% of the UK's energy from renewable sources by 2020, it's essential that a range of sustainable sources are put into widespread use."
Each Wave Treader machine generates approximately 500 KW, which is enough electricity to power 125 homes.
We're proud to have used the Juice Fund to support many different renewable generation projects since 2001, and will continue to invest in projects that can help provide a real environmental benefit. The 2010 Juice Fund is currently being accumulated, and will be used to support community-based renewable generation projects during 2010 and beyond. Be sure to check back here to find out more details as they are announced.
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0845 070 7719
