September 11, 2007
England
England
An energy firm has pulled out of controversial negotiations for a new wind farm which campaigners claimed would have overlooked some of Suffolk’s most beautiful countryside.
Diss-based Enertrag was in talks with the Henry Smith Charity over building up to eight 125 metre turbines on land at Chedburgh.
But yesterday, the firm confirmed its negotiations had ended without agreement.
The wind farm proposals met with strong opposition from those who live in the area as well as West Suffolk MP Richard Spring and South Suffolk MP Tim Yeo.
Paul Long, chairman of the action group set up to fight the scheme, welcomed the news last night.
He said: “We are delighted to hear the current negotiations have been concluded and there is now no plan to build a wind farm here.
“The Henry Smith Charity is a great charity which does wonderful work and improves the lives of thousands of people.
“We feel this project would have blighted the lives of several hundred local residents.
“The turbines would have dwarfed our fine medieval churches and magnificent countryside and, as we have consistently pointed out, on-shore wind farms are not the answer to the country’s energy shortage.
“As more and more people are now realising, they are a political sop fuelled by public subsidy.
“The action group set up to fight this plan is grateful to all those people who wrote in protest to the charity, to their MPs and to St Edmundsbury council.
“One should never under estimate the power of public opinion.”
The first hint that the discussions had fallen through came from one of the trustees at Henry Smith Charity, who, in a letter, said: “Our negotiations with Enertrag have concluded without agreement.”
This was confirmed yesterday by a spokesman for Enertrag, who said: “There has been no agreement and we do not believe at this stage that any agreement is likely.”
The Enertrag spokesman added the firm was now concentrating on other projects elsewhere in the country, such as in Linton, Cambridgeshire.
Public opposition to the scheme, however, was not cited as a cause of the breakdown in the negotiations.
Richard Hopgood, director of London-based Henry Smith Charity, said: “The negotiations have concluded without agreement and we are no longer in negotiation.”
He said the charity had not been approached by any other energy firm adding: “We just want to reflect on matters.”
11 September 2007
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2007/09/11/wind-farm-plans-scrapped-2/