Ridgeway Development Project
At Octopus Energy Generation, we’re on a mission to build green power for the future. We’re supercharging the green energy revolution with initiatives like the Octopus Fan Club, Plots for Kilowatts, and The Collective. These projects are all about more localised, people-powered wind energy.
Together, we’re making clean, green energy happen faster than ever before.
Plots for Kilowatts
Plots for Kilowatts got hundreds of enthusiastic landowners excited about hosting a turbine on their land, helping them diversify their incomes and create new revenue streams. This initiative also brings awesome benefits to local communities through our Octopus Fan Club.
Know anyone who’d love to host a turbine? Apply to Plots for Kilowatts here!
Check out our latest development at Prairie Field, a fantastic onshore wind project brought to life thanks to Plots for Kilowatts!
Project Overview
At Octopus Energy Generation, we're busy preparing a planning application to develop a single wind turbine at Ridgeway, Common Farm, Witchford, Ely, East Cambridgeshire.
But we can’t do it without you! We’re inviting everyone to share their thoughts on our development proposal. Join us for an in-person public consultation at Witchford Village Hall on Tuesday, January 31st, from 10am-7pm. We’d love to hear your feedback and chat about the project!
Once we have hopefully secured planning permission and the new turbine is up and running on the national grid, it could tap into some of our awesome customer perks. For example, it could become one of our Octopus Fan Clubs - more info on this below!
On top of this, we’re planning to offer a community benefit fund of £5,000 a year for the life of the project. We’re still figuring out the best way to make this happen locally, so stay tuned for more details!
This project is a perfect fit with Witchford Parish’s mission to reach carbon neutrality by 2030, right in line with the county’s goal for 100% clean, community-powered energy by 2050. It’s not just about green energy—it’s about preserving Witchford’s unique character as a vibrant, self-sustaining community that’s ready to thrive for generations to come.
Project Specifics
We’ve found the perfect spot at Common Farm. With wind speeds of 6.1 m/s at 60 meters, it’s ideal for generating clean energy. It’s more than 500 meters from any homes and just 1.2 km from the A142 road, nestled between the settlements of Witchford Village, Witcham, Coveney, Little Downham, Wentworth, Little Thetford and Ely. For a closer look at the location, check out our download files.
The wind turbine we plan to put on site is an EWT DirectWind 61 model. This efficient wind turbine features a 61-meter rotor diameter and a 59-meter hub height, with blade tips reaching up to 89.5 meters. It’s designed to generate up to 1 MW of clean energy, enough to power around 705 homes. It’s another step toward delivering greener and cheaper energy to you!
Why Ridgeway?
- Distance from homes: The nearest dwelling is over 500m away, ensuring minimal impact on the local community.
- Away from busy areas: It's tucked away from major infrastructure and roads, making it a discreet and ideal location for a turbine.
- Strong wind speeds: With wind speeds of approximately 6.1/s at hub height (59m), Ridgeway is perfect for harnessing consistent wind energy.
- Community support: We've seen a significant number of Fan Club sign ups from local residents who are keen to support the switch away from fossil fuels & would like to have an Octopus Fan Club in their area.
The Octopus Fan Club
Customers living close to one of our Fan Club turbines can sign up to receive discounts on their electricity bill.
Using their own personal dashboard and forecast notifications, members can monitor their local Fan and shift their energy consumption to the times when it’s cheapest and greenest.
Community support is vital when it comes to the development of onshore wind projects. Add yourself to our Fan Club waiting list today and be the first to know when we launch a Fan Club in your area!
Be a part of the green energy transition and help us to move towards a cheaper and greener future.
Here's what our current Octopus Fan Club members have to say...
At first, I was sceptical about the savings I could make. I was staggered when the savings were credited to my account. I now keep my eye on the fan club regularly and try to use my washer and dryer.
I'm really impressed with Octopus and how they are helping our local community save money . It has helped me feel closer to the turbine and understand how they work.
I think the Fan Club is a brilliant idea. Not only does it make me think about how and when I use energy but it is also helping in the battle with climate change and saving me money as well, win win all round.
Considerations
At Octopus Energy Generation, we’re busy preparing our planning application with help from a fantastic team of expert consultants. We'll be investigating ecology & biodiversity, landscape & visual, heritage, transport, noise, radar & telecommunications and flood risk & drainage. We're diving deep into these detailed technical surveys and assessments to ensure our application is top-notch.
Noise
Our ongoing noise assessment, follows strict guidelines to ensure we’re looking out for you and your neighbours near the proposed turbine site. We're all about keeping noise levels in check during both construction and operation, so you can enjoy the benefits without the bother.
Landscape & Visual
We will be carrying out a Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment (LVIA). This assessment will look at the current landscape, the design of our proposal, and any potential visual impacts, including cumulative effects. We'll be sharing the main study area and key conclusions with you soon, so stay tuned!
Photomontages
Ecology & Biodiversity
We will be conducting a Preliminary Ecological Assessment (PEA). This will cover a habitat survey and desk study, giving us some initial recommendations for further surveys and monitoring. We’ll also be carrying out additional bird and bat surveys to make sure everything's in tip-top shape. And the best part? We're committed to ensuring at least a 10% biodiversity net gain for the project!
Radar & Telecommunications
We will carry out the necessary surveys for Radar and Telecommunications. We’ll share the scope of the study and its findings here.
Heritage
We will be prepping a Heritage Impact Assessment to look at the significance of historic buildings, complexes, areas, monuments, or archaeological sites (heritage assets). This assessment will check out how the proposed wind turbine might affect these heritage assets and their surroundings. We'll be sharing the findings of the Heritage Impact Assessment with you right here soon!
Shadow Flicker
We are conducting a Shadow Flicker Assessment to check out the flickering effect caused by wind turbine blades casting shadows over neighboring properties through windows and other openings. Depending on the results, we might need to install a Shadow Flicker Prevention (SFP) System on the wind turbine to make sure no properties in the area experience unacceptable shadow flicker. We’ve got you covered!
Transport
We are preparing a Transport Management Plan (TMP). The details of this assessment will be shared here.
Flood Risk & Drainage
Information on flood risk and drainage assessments will be visible here.
Feedback
We’d love to hear your thoughts on our Ridgeway Development Project! If you can’t make it to our public consultation event on Tuesday, January 31st at Witchford Village Hall, no worries! You can still share your feedback with us online until 03/03/25.
For those joining us in person, feel free to share your thoughts on the day—we’re all ears!
Thanks for being a part of this journey with us! 💚
Meet your Project Manager!
"Hi, I'm Dave and I’m all about renewable energy, especially wind. I joined Octopus Energy over a year ago as a Heat Pumps Specialist and moved to the Innovation & Development Team in April 2024. I’m passionate about connecting with people and communities to build more wind projects and help ditch gas for good. My mission? Speed up the shift to renewables and make a real impact in the fight against climate change."
If you have any questions at all about the project, please contact Dave and the development team via insertemailaddress@octopusenergygeneration.com.
Planning Application
Octopus Energy Generation is gearing up to submit a planning application by the end of this year and our excellent Development team will be leading the charge.
Want to stay in the loop with project updates? Just fill out our feedback form and drop your email address in. We’ll be sure to ping you when there’s fresh news or updates on the site.
If you'd like to reach out to the development team with more general queries, you can reach them via development@octopusenergygeneration.com.
Download Files
Site Map
DownloadSite Photo
Download
Location Plan
DownloadZone of Theoretical Visibility (Hub & Tip)
DownloadZone of Theoretical Visibility (Viewpoints)
DownloadShadow Flicker Assessment
DownloadNoise Impact Assessment
DownloadHey I'm Constantine, welcome to Octopus Energy!
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