James Jones & Sons Ltd has funded the acquisition of the UK’s first subsidy-free windfarm, Inverclyde Windfarm Ltd, from BayWa r.e., in tandem with London-based specialist asset manager, Gresham House Asset Management.
Located in Inverclyde, Scotland, the site consists of eight wind turbines and has a total capacity of 24 MW. The clean energy produced will displace more than 18,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually. Earlier this year, Tesco Stores Ltd signed a 15-year power purchase agreement as the energy off-taker, thereby contributing to the retailer’s commitment to use 100% renewable electricity across the Tesco Group by 2030.
Chairman, Tom Bruce-Jones said: “James Jones & Sons Ltd is delighted to have funded this acquisition and this will further strengthen our trading and investment relations with Gresham House. We are constantly seeking ways to further enhance our carbon negative credentials for our products and activities, and displacing 18,000 tonnes of C02 via the Inverclyde windfarm now supplements the reduction of 17,200 tonnes from our in house biomass plants. We have been at the forefront of innovation with regards to all environmental matters for a number of years for all of our sawn timber, engineered wood products and pallet and packaging solutions.”
This investment is part of a Group wide 2020 capital expenditure programme. The Group has completed two new biomass projects at Aboyne and Mosstodloch, has opened a new pallet inspection and repair site in Coventry and is extending the Lockerbie sawmill site logyard in a GBP 3 million project. Total 2020 Group capex is GBP 20.4 million.
James Jones & Sons Ltd is the UK’s most diversified, family owned timber processor. The company today operates from 20 sites across the UK.
