Welsh Assembly gives go ahead to Eco2 wind farm

The wind farm, a joint venture with Cambrian Renewable Energy Ltd, is set to produce enough electricity for 23,800 households – the equivalent of almost one third of the domestic electricity consumption of Carmarthenshire. The project, which will save over two million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions over its lifetime, is set for completion in 2010.

Eco2 said that the wind development will be an asset to the locality and to Wales, bringing in new jobs and generating £30 million of investment; the company will also be dedicating £5 million to the Community Trust Funds for local projects and initiatives.

David Williams, chief executive of Eco2, said the decision by the Welsh Assembly was  a testament to the merits of the project, which was originally approved by Carmarthenshire County Council in June 2007. "A particularly windy site, our project at Mynydd y Betws will mean fewer turbines are required to produce a considerable amount of electricity,” he said.

Eco2 runs a diverse portfolio of renewable projects. At the close of last year, the company announced planning permission for a £100 million, 40 MW straw fired biomass plant in Sleaford, Lincolnshire, the first of 10 such projects that Eco2 intends to unveil over the next three years as part of a £1 billion programme that will see it become one of the largest biomass generators in Europe.