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The new initiative, Community Energy Catalyst, will support local communities to build their own clean energy infrastructure or secure stakes in larger regional renewable energy schemes. Fair Play Clean Energy, Thrive’s existing joint venture with Top Cashback Sustainability Ltd, will provide £20 million of the investment, with Better Society Capital providing matched funding.
Community Energy Catalyst will make investments ranging between £0.5 million to £30 million in individual projects which are at least 1MW in size and employ proven technologies such as onshore and offshore wind, solar PV and hydro-electric. The joint venture will target late-stage development projects that have already secured planning consent, enabling them to advance through to construction, commissioning and operation while aligning with local objectives.
As well as funding, Thrive brings 30 years of experience financing, building and operating clean energy projects in the UK, and will provide support to community energy groups during key milestones such as procurement and grid connection.
When we created our award-winning community funding bridge in 2017, it was the first of its kind. Eight years later we’ve invested over £21 million into seven community energy projects, including £4 million to build England’s largest onshore wind turbine, which is 100% owned by the community in our home city of Bristol.

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Funding partnership with Better Society Capital will help more communities to own their own projects or take a stake in a larger project in their local area.

We’re partnering with the UK’s leading social impact investor to mobilise £40 million for community-owned energy projects

Featured

Thrive Renewables provides an efficient and rewarding financial connection with sustainable energy, uniting shareholders and bondholders in direct investment in a cleaner, smarter energy system.
As an un-listed plc*, Thrive aims to benefit from this membership by reaching more likeminded investors, and to create a wider awareness around the opportunity to invest directly into sustainable energy via our share offers and secondary share market, essential to the company’s future growth.
Matthew Clayton, MD of Thrive joined the SSX Investor Conference on the 1st February and was part of a panel talking about action through impact investment. The video link with highlights from the event can be found <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUhF6eEVeTw">here</a>.
Thrive Renewables can also be found listed on <a href="http://www.ethex.org.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">http://www.ethex.org.uk/</a> – an online community helping investors to make positive investments simply and securely.
<h3>About the Social Stock Exchange</h3>
The Social Stock Exchange provides access to the world’s first regulated exchange dedicated to businesses and investors seeking to achieve a positive social and environmental impact through their activities. The aim of the exchange is to help these businesses connect with investors and unlock capital at scale.  All issuer member companies must meet a rigorous set of criteria before joining, including the publication of an Impact Report.
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*Thrive Renewables is not listed on a stock exchange such as London Stock Exchange (LSE) or the Alternative Investment Market (AIM)

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TIDE &amp; ISE 2018

The Social Stock Exchange (SSX) - the UK’s public market for impact investing has approved Thrive Renewables as a member following the approval of its impact report by the independent Admissions Panel.

We've joined the Social Stock Exchange

The site of this three-wind turbine project is a disused open cast coal mine to the north of Blackridge in West Lothian, Scotland. The 6MW project will generate enough renewable electricity to meet the annual demand of 5,458 UK homes.
Thrive’s goal is to allow individuals to contribute to cleaning up the UK’s energy system.  The clean energy transition is particularly evident at this site.
Thrive was established over 20 years ago and now unites a community of 6,300 investors and has invested over 100MW of renewable energy. We work with developers and communities to develop and build new sources of renewable energy to contribute to a cleaner smarter energy system fit for the future.
We also provide an opportunity for individuals to invest directly in a portfolio of renewable energy projects, delivering financial returns and contributing to tangible greenhouse gas emission reductions.
Visit the <a href="/projects/drumduff-wind-farm/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Drumduff project page</a> for information about the site.

The successful transition from coal to clean energy

Drumduff wind farm construction

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Onsite at Drumduff

This film captures the completion and transition from coal mine to wind power, a joint venture between Thrive Renewables (Thrive) and GreenPower featuring drone footage.

Video: Successful transition from coal to clean energy

This is achieved by owners carrying out their own self-guided energy audits and using local trades people where possible to reduce running costs, lower CO2 emissions, and increase the use of their premises, making them more accessible, comfortable and better utilised to groups relying on them.
<h3>Grants awarded in 2016</h3>
A total of eight grants were awarded in 2016 ranging in value from £800 to £4,000 (the grant maximum). A variety of buildings benefited from the grants including community centres, village halls, a cricket pavilion and a Baptist church/youth centre all based around Thrive sites across the country including Bristol, Lancashire, Cumbria, Fife and Suffolk.
The range of improvements installed, as a result of the grants, included loft insulation, double glazed windows, replacement external doors, energy efficient lighting, lighting sensors, pipe and hot water tank insulation, water saving devices like taps and instantaneous water heaters, floor insulation and replacement heating – all essential for helping to improve the comfort and warmth of buildings during cold months &#8211; often a time when these buildings are underutilised.
There were other zero cost energy saving measures adopted by some of the groups receiving funding, as well as some just calling for advice, including cleaning windows to let more light and heat in, and labelling switches and controls so users could switch off lights after use/or make best use of their heating. The improvements have benefitted organisations as diverse as toddler groups, ballroom dancing lessons, the Womens’ Institute, friendship clubs, youth sports teams and budding music makers.
Through this programme Thrive also hopes to educate and empower people locally to take the self-guided energy audit of the community building and then feeling confident to use the same approach at home or for friends. The impact in the community is then wider than the measures installed in the hall.
<h3>Energy savings made</h3>
The total amount awarded in the first year of the programme was £25,872 with a total annual savings calculated at 10.13 tonnes carbon dioxide saved by the scheme and 36,839 kWh.

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In November 2015, Thrive Renewables launched its Community Benefit Programme which has now run a full year.

Communities benefit from energy saving grants

The previous review of the DRSP took place in October 2016 when the valuation grew 3.5% from £2.27 to £2.35. We have recently reviewed the DRSP again as a result of the combination of the following events which were considered to have both positive and negative impacts on the value of Thrive Renewables.
<h3>Wind resource and weather impact</h3>
Independent experts have suggested that 2016 was 4.3% less windy at a national level than the long-term expectations with wind farms exporting up to 9% less energy as a result. In addition to lower wind speeds, we also had a challenging time at Caton Moor, our largest wind farm which is located east of Lancaster where floods which hit the North West of England in the winter of 2015/16 caused a lot of damage to the region’s electricity distribution networks. In addition to homes and businesses being without power, the contingency in the electricity network was impaired, so the system ran in a fragile state in early 2016 while repairs and upgrades were made. The impact for Thrive Renewables was that Caton Moor wind farm was switched off and unable to export to the grid for extended periods during January and February which were the windiest months of 2016. As our largest wind farm, usually generating 22% of our renewable electricity, this reduced the amount of power we generated.
Additionally, we expect to generate more than a third of our electricity in October, November and December. Despite the tail of storm Barbara arriving over Christmas, all three months were exceptionally less windy than is typical and, overall we have generated less power and consequently less revenue than we expected in 2016. Both the low wind resource and outage at Caton Moor have had a negative impact on the value of Thrive Renewables.
As a result of the windiness in 2016 we have revised our expectations of electricity export downwards for future years.
There are a number of factors, however, which have had a positive impact on the value of Thrive Renewables.
<h3>New investments</h3>
In January, we reached significant milestones on two new projects:
<ul>
<li>In collaboration with Scottish developer Green Power we have concluded all the procurement work at Drumduff wind farm. We have now commenced construction of this 6MW wind farm which is located on a disused coal mine in West Lothian, Scotland. Once built this project will generate the equivalent amount of electricity to meet the needs of 4,400* UK homes per annum.</li>
<li>We also contributed to the funding of a wind farm in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The wind farm is a two turbine site with a generating capacity of 4.6MW. Construction has commenced with first generation planned for summer 2017.</li>
</ul>
The construction of the two wind farms puts our investors’ money to work, contributing to new renewable energy generation capacity. Having raised £8.4m via the Thrive Renewables plc Bond issue, we have the funds to continue to grow our impact and revenues by investing in further renewable energy generation projects.
<h3>Wholesale electricity prices</h3>
Approximately 50% of Thrive Renewables income is derived from the sale of electricity via the wholesale electricity market. In the autumn of 2016 the UK’s wholesale electricity prices increased. Whilst there are many factors which led to this change in price, two elements had significant impact. The first was that following the Brexit referendum, Sterling (£) weakened against the Euro (€) and US dollar ($). As the majority of the UK’s energy is sourced from fossil fuels, and fossil fuels tend to be traded in € and $, the cost of these imported fuels increased and consequently UK electricity prices rose.
The second element impacting the wholesale electricity prices in the Autumn was that a number of the French nuclear power plants were offline due to unplanned or extended checks and maintenance. This pushed up European power prices as the French nuclear supply typically exports power to neighbouring countries (including the UK via the interconnectors), so the shortfall had an impact on prices. Fortunately, we were able to fix future prices on a number of our power sales agreements, which, weather permitting will allow revenues to be increased in the coming months.
<h3>Overall impact</h3>
With due consideration of these material impacts, the Directors find that the positive and negative factors have a neutral effect on the valuation of Thrive Renewables and the Directors’ Recommended Share Price is unchanged at £2.35.
Background on previous DRSP movements can be found on the Thrive website <a href="http://www.thriverenewables.co.uk/for-investors/buying-and-selling-shares/recommended-share-price/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">http://www.thriverenewables.co.uk/for-investors/buying-and-selling-shares/recommended-share-price/</a>
*BEIS average UK home electricity consumption 3.938MWh/Home

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A review and round up of 2016 investments and performance with the Directors' recommended share price remaining unchanged at £2.35.

Share price review 30 January 2017

A senior debt facility of up to £11.4 million has been secured from Santander UK plc (“Santander UK”), with the balance of funding met equally between GreenPower and Thrive.
This will be the first project for either GreenPower or Thrive using GE turbines. The project will generate approximately 20,200 MWh per annum, equivalent to the yearly demand from 5,120 homes*.
* Based on an average UK domestic electricity consumption of 3,938kWh/annum (‘Energy Consumption in the UK’, November 2016, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy)

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Achieving this milestone triggers the commencement of the construction of the wind farm which will commence generation in summer 2017.

£11.4 million project financing for the Drumduff wind farm

Please note the share offer closed on 13 March 2017 and is no longer available. 
Funds raised by the new bond will be put to work straight away to build two new onshore windfarms in Scotland with a combined capacity of 11MW. Once built, these will be able to generate enough electricity for 8720 homes. In addition, funds will support a pipeline project generating solar power.
Thrive currently has a portfolio of 15 operational renewable energy sites, with a third of these in Scotland. Its 21 year track record in investing in projects that result in both financial and environmental benefit, that are small to medium scale, sensitively sited and provide sustainable power to the UK grid. Thrive provides shareholders an efficient and rewarding financial connection with sustainable energy and a role in building the new, smarter energy system.
This was the first unlisted bond to be eligible to be held in the new third ISA: the Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA). Over 50% of the investors in the Thrive bond chose to hold their bonds in an IFISA and will receive their interest tax free.
The speed of the raise shows the significant demand for commercially viable and sustainable investments. Investors could invest online for a minimum of just £5 making this investment widely accessible to everyday investors. A total of 938 people invested, with a third of those existing share or bond holders, meaning Thrive has grown its investor community by some 600 people.
The bond, issued by Thrive Renewables plc on an unsecured basis, will pay 5% gross interest per year with capital repaid in March 2024. Payment of interest and repayment of capital is not guaranteed and is dependent on the continued successful operation of the Thrive business model.
Thrive already generates enough clean electricity to meet the need of over 40,000 homes; the additional projects coming online as a result of this bond will boost that to a further 8,270 homes.
Thrive was advised by Triodos Bank. Its Corporate Finance Team Head Dan Hird said: “This is the fastest capital raise we have ever done. I think it captured people’s interest because of the strong brand and good track record of Thrive as a company, the impact it has as an organisation and the financial return &#8211; coupled with the ability to receive the interest tax free through the ISA.
The corporate finance team of Triodos Bank is acting as adviser to Thrive Renewables and promoter of the offer. Abundance Investment, the regulated peer to peer investment platform, is acting as registrar and facilitator for the bonds and is the IFISA manager.
Thrive Renewables targeted £7.5m for this raise but will issue up to £10m of bonds through this offer. The bond second offer is still open with a minimum subscription amount of £90,000 and a final closing date of 27 February 2017. For more information please contact Triodos Bank on <a href="mailto:investments@triodos.co.uk">investments@triodos.co.uk</a> or 0117 980 9593.

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Thrive Renewables plc (Thrive), one of the UK’s most widely owned independent renewable energy companies, has raised £7.7 million through a bond offer.

Thrive exceeds £7.5 million bond target

With a career in wind energy spanning more than two decades, Colin has seen his fair share of developments including the turbulent beginnings of the 80s Californian wind boom, the building of Europe’s biggest onshore windfarm in 1994, with 103 turbines on a hilltop just outside Newtown in Powys, and to present day, where he leads a multi-national team committed to being part of the solution that drives to take carbon and international politics out of our energy supply.
Colin, a keen cyclist, bypassed the traffic to our Thrive office to spend some time talking about his career, renewables, the importance of time with family, cycling and love of everything that Bristol has to offer.
<h3>Colin, tell us how you got into renewables and specifically wind energy</h3>
“My education went down the traditional engineering route. I’ve been interested in energy since the age of 15 and upon taking a geography O’Level my interest grew in clean energy. By the time I went to university the next step was a degree in Mechanical Engineering in London. Soon after leaving Uni, I happened upon a small start-up in wind energy called Garrad Hassan, and joined them. The move was intended to be temporary, partly to stay and experience London for another year as renewables back then was not considered to be a real career, most of my peers joining aerospace, automotive, accountancy or chemical companies. I ended up staying there 28 years!”
The company grew and ultimately merged into DNV GL, which operates worldwide as one of the leading engineering certification, safety and consultancy businesses. By 2015 Colin was a Senior VP there having held various roles including being globally responsible for the company’s offshore wind business and manager of the 400-strong business unit providing renewables consulting across Western Europe and Latin America. In July 2015 he left with five colleagues to found Everoze, still focused on the remit around clean energy, including wind and solar, but also storage and potentially wider power and energy system issues. Everoze has grown quickly to 25 staff in UK and France, advising investors, developers, operators and policy-makers in renewables and storage; by leveraging their extensive industry network and deep technical understanding.
“It’s nice to be doing engineering again and delivering projects. Our ethical drive is to take carbon out of our energy system, so we’re trying hard to maintain an enjoyable work environment, but we are still making a meaningful impact.” This motivation and ethos has made Colin a successful transformational leader.
<h3>What&#8217;s your experience of how the industry has changed over the years?</h3>
“Back when I started out in 1987, it wasn’t about carbon, people had an awareness of fossil fuels polluting, but climate change was not really on the agenda. It was about sustainability of supply. Wind energy was seen back then as a cottage industry. It began with a flurry of activity in California. Wind farms were manufactured in all sorts of shapes and sizes by a huge range of companies, most of which went bust, but a couple survived and are still here today. This drove a lot of wind energy to be installed, and a lot of painful lessons to be learnt. Some of my earliest work was in understanding those lessons and feeding it into the next phase of the industry which happened in Europe.
The plus point was an injection of interest in wind and investment to get the sector through its early growing pains. By the early 90’s UK, Denmark and Germany had developed a market which supported construction of new wind farms, and there was significant UK-based manufacture going on. However, the UK market waned in the mid 90’s as the Government ‘dash for gas’ policy dominated, which is a major reason why the dominant turbine suppliers today are from Germany and Denmark. It simply took too long to get a reliable market started in the UK. That happened in 2002/3 when the Renewables Obligation support mechanism started. From that point until 2015, the UK provided policy support which was as consistent as anywhere in the world hence why we’ve seen over a decade of massive growth in renewable power on our system at new-build prices which have now pretty much closed the gap on conventional generation options. If we look at the power capacity that is being installed now, renewables is a major player and in many parts of the world, including Europe, dominant.”
<h3>What&#8217;s your prediction for renewables in the energy system?</h3>
“The most exciting development in renewables is the cost coming down and it being a time where renewables are the rational economic choice against conventional generators without any kind of subsidy. Where competition has been introduced new renewable projects have been developed significantly more cheaply signalling that the time is right to move towards a competitive model, where renewables compete with each other and non-renewables. This is happening globally. In the UK we’re currently on the path to a generation mix which is heavily gas based and I’m confident that new onshore wind projects can be cost competitive with new <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combined_cycle">Combined Cycle Gas Turbines</a> (CCGTs). Large-scale solar PV in the south of the UK is not far behind and energy from offshore wind is also getting sharply cheaper.
CCGT is much cleaner than coal, but still generating carbon. We hear a lot about Carbon Capture and Storage, but that is some way from being commercial. Just as the main market mechanism for onshore wind and solar PV was stalled by the incoming 2015 UK Government, so there is no effective market mechanism at present to trigger new-build of CCGTs. Onshore wind projects being built now are happening because of legacy arrangements. In this context, the decision to go ahead and build Hinckley is an irrelevance (as well as being economically irrational). With old plants being retired from the system, near-term action is needed to keep the lights on from around 2020.
So, while we are in something of a policy vacuum, necessity dictates that the Government must bring forward policies in the next year or so to promote building of further new generation capacity. Provided that economic rationality and the interests of the electricity consumer figure significantly in those policies, they should result in a substantial and potentially dominant proportion of our new generators being renewable. Those renewable generators are most likely to be onshore wind projects in Scotland, because it’s more supportive in terms of planning, windier and has space for larger more cost-effective projects than in England and Wales.
But crucially, we are at the point where national policy to build renewables stops being a fluffy environmental decision that needs subsidy support – it is the low cost option for the consumer.
And what about when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine? My view of a future system is a move towards wind increasing onshore and offshore, with more solar in the South, increased electrical interconnection with Europe, a lot more storage plant distributed around the country and more flexible control of demand &#8211; having more active control of our consumption – identifying what power can be turned off safely and without the consumer even noticing.”
<h3>What will people think in the future when we look back at all this?</h3>
“Coming from a situation where as a nation we have used a few large remote power stations to power the grid for over 100 years, it has disconnected people entirely from where they get their electricity. Most people have no idea of how our electricity system works. Go back a few generations, what were the first things people did in the morning – find water, find fuel, find food – how many people today think about how to get their fuel? We’ve had to make no compromises in our lives to make that happen other than paying the bills. In the future if we want clean cost-effective power, we have to accept the compromise that the source of that power is not invisible. So in the future I’d like to think that renewable energy will be as widely accepted in our environment as the entirely man-made agricultural landscape is today. It is essential that renewables win that social acceptance, which will be by being good neighbours, by education and by people having ownership. That ownership may be real, as Thrive offers, or it may be the kind that people feel towards familiar features – like the Victorian mill you always passed by on the way to school.
People will also wonder why we were so profligate in how we used energy, so improving efficiency is non-negotiable and the stakes are increasing. We’ve got a future in which it is likely transport and heat will be electrified. We’re already at 25% of electricity being generated from renewables in UK, which is great, but as we electrify the wider energy system in the long-term our electricity demand can only go up. That’s why there is such a pressing need to sort out electricity generation – to break the link between electricity and carbon dioxide production and to do so without increasing the cost to the consumer.
So we know where we need to get to and it’s about getting there as fast as we can. We’ll need technology development, cost reduction and social acceptance, but there’s every reason to be optimistic.”
<h3> About Colin Morgan</h3>
<ul>
<li>Chartered Mechanical Engineer with over 29 years in the wind energy industry,</li>
<li>Non-Executive Director of Thrive Renewables PLC since 2013, sitting on the Operations Health &amp; Safety Sub-Committee</li>
<li>Senior VP / Regional Manager for DNV GL (Western Europe &amp; Latin America ), 2013-2015, one of the largest, most respected, renewable advisory teams in the world;</li>
<li>Global Head of Offshore Wind for the GL Group 2011-2013;</li>
<li>Chaired Renewable UK Onshore Wind Cost Reduction Task-force 2014/15.</li>
</ul>
Founder of <a href="http://everoze.com/">Everoze</a> (2015) &#8211; a business committed to being part of the solution as they drive to take carbon and international politics out of our energy supply. Client-focused technical experts across the renewable energy sector.

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Introducing Colin Morgan, founder of Everoze, wind-energy pioneer and Thrive board member.

Team profile: Wind energy pioneer, Colin Morgan

Following our investment in Gevens wind farm in December 2015, the 6.9 MW project in Fife, Scotland has now begun delivering renewable electricity.  The procurement of a further wind farm in Scotland is also progressing well.
We hope that you like the new format of the half year report.  In response to your feedback we have introduced an easier to read layout for the report and on our website. The report also includes recent feedback from our shareholders and the local community who attended our successful wind farm open day at Ransonmoor Farm in Cambridgeshire.

We are pleased to present the 2016 Half Year Report with an update on the Company’s operational and financial performance to 30 June 2016.

2016 half year report

Our website address has changed from triodosrenewables.co.uk to www.thriverenewables.co.uk
The underlying company, our renewable projects and team remain the same and we continue to maintain our core values and principles. Our aim for the new website is to provide an even better user experience for our visitors and shareholders. This includes improvements to the layout so you can find your way around the site more easily.
We have now launched the first part of the website with a view to fully completing the site by the end of September. If you have any queries or require further information, please do contact us directly. 
We welcome your feedback to <a href="mailto:info@thriverenewables.co.uk">info@thriverenewables.co.uk</a> and hope you enjoy the new look and feel of the Thrive Renewables website.

As part our move to Thrive Renewables, we have redeveloped and launched a new website.

Our new website goes live

Within the first week of going live to existing shareholders, the offer had received almost half of its funding target. The bond had a £250 minimum investment with 5.5% annual return over a five year period and appeared to be warmly welcomed by the investor community. The investment was secured against two existing and generating wind farms in Strichen, Scotland, and as part of its community initiatives, Thrive Renewables made the bond available to the local public as part of the pre-general release.
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Thrive Renewables has a strong investor community which now includes 418 bond holders, of which 100 with an average investment of £6,900 per holder. Investors were drawn from all areas and ages ranging from 24 to 90 years showing the diversity of Thrive Renewables’ community. Despite the withdraw of Government subsidies for renewable energy, the success of this bond offer is testament to Thrive Renewables’ approach of investing in solid portfolios honed over a 20 year history.
Building on the success of Thrive’s recently published annual results, 2015 has been a record-breaking year for the company, with a 16% growth in investor numbers and revenue was up 22% to £15 million. Generation capacity also rose to 169,485 MWh of renewable energy with increased impact equivalent to 72,876 tonnes of CO2 saved (up 26% on last year).
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Investors have demonstrated their confidence in renewable energy by embracing Thrive Renewables group’s first ever bond offer which closed in record time.

Thrive's first bond offer completed in just under four weeks

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There had previously been a barn owl box on the site, installed on Wessex Water’s pumping station by the Hawk and Owl Trust many years ago. The pumping station is situated right next to one of the wind turbines so, before building work began this box, plus others at the site, were moved to a new location about 400 metres from the wind turbine.
Barn owls were known to use the existing box for breeding prior to the construction of the turbines but have not been recorded breeding on site since the boxes were relocated and the turbines built. The Landmark Practice, who monitor the ecology of the site on behalf of Thrive Renewables, were therefore pleased to find two owlets last month, which are thought to have hatched around the beginning of June. The owlets, which are now seven to eight weeks old, will be competent fliers at around ten weeks old, but will remain close to the nest box until they disperse at around 13 weeks old.
The planning process for the turbines was heavily influenced by wildlife at and around the site. The scheme therefore included measures designed to ensure that there was minimal impact was caused by the addition of the wind farm. This latest development shows that the measures taken have sustained the existing wildlife interest at the site, providing the sensitive conditions needed by barn owls to breed.
Despite the urban setting, the Avonmouth site is a stronghold for wildlife, with rough, grassland areas which are perfect for owls and their prey, including small rodents like voles. While barn owls are traditionally associated with farmland, they are equally suited to brownfield sites as long as they have access to good quality foraging and resting habitat.
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Caton Moor owls

Barn Owls have nested this summer in an owl box situated at our industrial site at Avonmouth. 

We have barn owl chicks at Avonmouth

With a strong 20 year history behind us and having built a trusted and established portfolio of projects driven by sustainability, the fundamentals remain, and are now more important than ever.
The outlook for Thrive Renewables remains positive. Our rationale for this:
<ul>
<li>As one of the leading proponents of the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change), the UK has set national greenhouse gas emission reduction targets in law.</li>
<li>The weak pound will increase the cost of imported energy prices making renewables more competitive and home grown energy all the more valuable. This moves us closer to a level playing field for renewables making the security of supply a stronger case for the future.</li>
<li>The majority of our debt has fixed interest rates, thereby mitigating exposure to any increased volatility in interest rates.</li>
</ul>
2015 was a record-breaking year of renewable generation for Thrive Renewables with strong growth in our community of shareholders (up 16% in the year to 5,700). Revenue is up 22% to £15m achieving pre-tax profit of £2.3m. In addition, we have just completed our very successful 5.5% bond offer which completed in just under four weeks, connecting more people with renewable energy and releasing capital for growth.
Whilst there is uncertainty in the market, Thrive Renewables shall continue to generate sustainable electricity 365 days a year, rain and shine.

The wind still blows and the rain continues to fall…

Brexit will not change the weather

After 22 years, you can imagine how productive a life these blades have had – generating over 88 GWh of clean electricity and travelling just over eight million miles in total. That’s the equivalent to making a quarter of a million return journeys from Thrive’s office in Bristol to Sigurd in an electric vehicle!
The blades now need replacing in order to extend the operational life of Sigurd. In some instances, it’s possible to reuse blades when a whole turbine is decommissioned, which is the exercise we undertook when repowering our Caton Moor wind farm in Lancashire. However, when blades are calculated to reach the end of their life, reuse isn’t possible. This raises the question; how can we dispose of the blades in the most sustainable way?
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Although the blades from Sigurd can’t be reused for renewable energy generation, they can be repurposed. With the new rotor now fitted at Sigurd and the old blades taken off, we’re pleased to be working with <a href="https://www.reblade.co.uk/about-us">ReBlade</a> to repurpose as much of the blades as possible. They will be turned into useful items for businesses, councils and communities, which could include sustainable bike shelters, EV charging stations, or even bespoke dining tables.

Made primarily from fiberglass and other composite materials, wind turbine blades are difficult to recycle. ReBlade is the first UK company to decommission turbine blades without the use of landfill, pioneering innovative approaches to blade handling that enable circular end-destinations for blade waste.

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Sigurd 1

The 22-year-old turbine blades that have reached end-of-life will be repurposed into furniture for councils, communities and businesses.

Turbines to tabletops - We're working with Reblade to reduce waste at our Sigurd wind farm

In <a href="https://www.positive.news/society/how-uk-businesses-can-ramp-up-progress-on-the-sdgs/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">our latest article with Positive News UK,</a> you can find out how the UK is progressing in building a fair and sustainable future, and how businesses can make a tangible difference to people and planet. You can also find out more about how Thrive’s work supports the UN SDGs via our <a href="https://www.thriverenewables.co.uk/thriverenewablesimpactreport.co.uk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Impact Report here</a>.
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Rooftop solar TR Olympus Power

For Global Goals Week, we discuss the role of businesses in protecting the planet and tackling poverty in support of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Positive News UK: How can UK businesses supercharge progress on the UN Sustainable Development Goals?

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Half year operating profits were £5.9 million on a turnover of £12.3 million, with shareholders receiving a final dividend of 12p per share for 2022, which was paid in July.
With many people still feeling the consequences of the UK’s reliance on dirty, expensive fossil fuels, we’re continuing to fund and build new clean energy projects that not only contribute to the country’s decarbonisation goals but deliver cleaner, cheaper power for people today.
<h3>Strong performance across the portfolio</h3>
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We were pleased to report the successful construction of England’s largest onshore wind turbine during the first half of the year, which we helped fund with a £4 million investment. The 4.2 MW turbine in Bristol is the only onshore wind turbine to be built this year in England and is now generating clean electricity, with profits being reinvested back into the local community.
In addition, we’re proud to say that we’re the first commercial battery owner in the UK to offer a local community group an opportunity for shared ownership of a standalone battery storage project. Bristol Energy Cooperative (BEC) will be able to make a co-investment of up to 20% in our 20 MW battery project on Feeder Road in Bristol. The addition of this project alongside the ACE turbine and our existing 8.2 MW Avonmouth wind farm means that we’ve now funded more than a third of Bristol’s total renewable electricity generation and storage capacity (37%).
<h3>Growing pipeline of clean energy projects </h3>
Entering the second half of the year in a strong position, we have a range of new projects in the pipeline to continue growing our portfolio of wind, solar, geothermal, hydro and battery projects. This includes our biggest single investment to date, which has seen us provide a £20 million loan to Ethical Power to help fund 192 MW of new solar PV and battery storage projects across the UK.
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[1] Refers to Thrive’s impact portfolio – total electricity generation of the portfolio adjusted for Thrive’s proportion of ownership, plus the projects Thrive is funding.
[2] Calculated using the most recent statistics from the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) showing that UK average domestic household consumption is 3,509 kWh per annum (1,755 kWh for a half year) <a href="https://www.renewableuk.com/page/UKWEDExplained" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://www.renewableuk.com/page/UKWEDExplained. </a>

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