German energy giant Innogy has formally opened its 2MW run-of-river hydro scheme in the Highlands.
To mark the event, Hans Bünting, Chief Operating Officer Renewables of innogy SE, presented a cheque for £50,000 to the Torridon Mountain Rescue Team.
The £7.6 million project is located on the Grudie river near Loch Maree, about five miles from Kinlochewe.
Pupils from Kinlochewe Primary School, contractors and members of the local community were invited guests at a special event in Kinlochewe to mark the funding windfall. The pupils have also named the two turbines following a field trip to the Grudie powerhouse.
Richard Cockburn of Torridon Mountain Rescue Team, said: “We thank innogy wholeheartedly for providing this donation which is critical for the construction of our new base.
“Without the initial funding and support from St John Scotland this dream would not have been realised and now the additional funding from innogy will allow us to push the start button.“
Hans Bünting said: “Hydro is important to innogy in the UK. We have 24 operational schemes generating 83.75MWs of power – of which 32MW is in Scotland.
“We have been developing hydro in Scotland since the year 2000, it is a great place to do business and we want to continue to do so – Grudie is our 16th operational scheme in this country.
“But also important to us, when developing our projects, is that we are able to work with local and regional businesses in order to maximise the economic benefits to the local economy.
“We also invest monies into local community activities and projects; with decisions about how the funding is spent being made by the people that know and understand their community best.“
8 Sept 2017
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