Abingdon Hydro - River Thames

EAP Directors Sophie Christopher Bowes & Martin Bowes  Directors of Abingdon Hydro CIC Project talk about the project.

 

What is it?

A project to generate hydroelectric power from the Thames at Abingdon. The picture above gives a rough idea of how it might look.

Abingdon Hydro is the name of the Community Interest Company that we have formed to work on it. The rules for this type of company require that it must produce benefits for the local community. And that is important: this is a community enterprise, and we want a lot of local people to share in the ownership and the benefits.

Where would it be?

At the end of Abbey Meadow, by the entrance to the weir. Water would flow from the top of the Abbey Stream down into the Thames. There is a picture and more explanation on the More Info page.
Why do it?

Many people have looked at all the water coming over the weir and wondered why its power cannot be used. Although the power we can get from Abingdon's weir is modest compared with what we use, over the entire country it adds up.

Financially it looks like a good long term investment. However this is about more than just money. It is an opportunity for community ownership, and reinvesting some of the income in local renewable energy projects. If we do nothing, then before long some big company will come in and do it for their own shareholders.

Screws are a very visible advertisement for renewable energy, an educational resource, fascinating to watch, a visitor attraction. Local groups are working on other sites on the Thames, and work is well advanced in Windsor, Goring and Streatley, and Osney.

Is there a plan and a timetable?First we need all the approvals – planning permission, Environment Agency licence, etc. That is what we are doing. Also we have to decide on the final shape of the project – who runs it, how the earnings will be distributed, etc. Then comes the share offer, and we hope as much as possible of the investment will come from local people. The third stage is to get it built and running.

The feed in tariffs (in effect a bonus payment for renewable electricity) will be revised from April 2013. In case they get revised downward, we want to be generating before then, to get the present rate. Working back from there, construction would be Autumn 2012, when the river flow is low. So we would need a share offer several months before, to be able to place the orders in time.

Financial estimates

We do not yet have a reliable figure for the cost, but the estimate for Goring and Streatley is £1.4 million. The electrical power we get should average about 100kW, which is the power taken by about 200 average houses. With the present feed in tariff it should earn about £120,000 per year. That is an attractive return, but shareholders will not get it all because we want to set aside a generous amount for community projects - this is not a get rich quick scheme! However the technology is simple and robust, so we can expect it to keep working for many decades. Although renewables tend to be seen as risky, the river will keep flowing, and demand for electricity will not go away.

 

We will also need risk capital to pay for the approvals and the share offer - perhaps £20,000.