Dale Vince to open Stroud's Renewable Energy Fair
10th July 2001
Dale Vince, Managing Director of local 'green' energy company, Ecotricity, and a regional winner of the Entrepreneur of the Year Awards 2001, will officially open this year's Renewable Energy Fair in Stroud, on Thursday 12th July. Organised by Energy 21 and sponsored by Ecotricity, the fair will take place throughout the town centre until Saturday14th July and is free to everyone.
The fair is a great day out for the whole family with exhibitions from representatives of renewable energy, electricity and sustainability industries as well as children's activities and solar powered local music.
Wind and Water Tours, costing £6 (including tea), will provide an insight into wind and hydropower generation, by taking visitors to the Lynch Knoll wind turbine near Nympsfield, built by Ecotricity in 1996, and to weirs around Stroud. The wind turbine currently provides enough power for 1% of Stroud district and Dale plans to increase the output of the site fivefold by adding another four turbines.
Seminars will be held in the Subscription Rooms over the three days, covering various aspects of renewable energy and its ecological impact on communities, landscape, flora and fauna and how it can help to empower people locally. Each seminar costs £30, or £15 for concessions and will be followed by 'cheese and wine'.
An exhibition on 'Alternative Vehicles' will demonstrate the latest technologies in "clean & green" fuels and a procession of cars of the future will travel through Stroud at 12.30pm on both Thursday and Friday.
Commenting on the fair, Dale Vince says,
"The obstacle to greater use of renewable energy in Stroud District, and the rest of the country, is not commercial or technical, it's planning. This fair will demonstrate the maturity and commercial viability of the technology and lead to a better understanding of the importance of renewable energy in our futures."
For further information, please telephone 01453 752277 or collect a leaflet from Stroud Library or Ebley Mill.
- For further information contact Clare Summers, Ecotricity, Axiom House, Station Road, Stroud, Gloucestershire, GL5 3AP; Tel: (01453) 756111; Fax: (01453) 756222; E-mail: info@ecotricity.co.uk
- Ecotricity founded the UK's 'green' electricity market place in 1995 and is now Europe's largest such supplier. Ecotricity is the No.1 choice in 'green' electricity and current customers include The Body Shop, The Co-operative Bank, WWF-UK and EMI. Ecotricity was awarded the Queen's Award for Enterprise 2000, for its Environmental Achievement and was honoured by the Queen at a Buckingham Palace reception earlier this year.