THE CALVERT Trust has revealed a brand-new wind turbine at its Exmoor adventure centre, which could cut electricity bills by a third.

The turbine was officially unveiled by Lady Arran on Saturday, thanks to a £30,000 grant from EDF Energy and a £65,000 Devon County Council grant.

Fiona Sim, of the Calvert Trust, said: "The £65,000 County Council grant was awarded for renewable energy projects at Calvert Trust of which £20,000 is for the wind turbine— Cllr Andrea Davis, who lives locally, was our champion for the DCC funding."

Cllr Davies said: "I was very pleased to be able to help the Calvert Trust raise the money for renewable projects, the bid for £65,000 I submitted to the Airport Fund was successful with the members fully supporting the projects and the Calvert Trust."

The turbine itself is a vertical axis wind turbine, which was supplied by Alvesta Energy Ltd, based on Mullacott Industrial Estate, Ilfracombe.

It is a type of turbine used more often in Australia and New Zealand, and is expected to generate between 25% and 30% of the centre's electricity needs.

Fiona Sim said: "Ours is the second installation of this type in the UK but the first on a 12m tower, with 12 blades with a 30kW turbine.

"The first is on Friendship Farm, one of our near neighbours and can be seen from our site."

She added: "The vertical axis which rotates like a helicopter, is not as visually intrusive as the horizontal axis or windmill designs.

"It does not cause strobing and is almost silent — our horses haven't batted an eyelid.

"We hope it will provide around a third of our electricity needs which will help keep our costs as low as possible. The reduction in our energy bills will help us to keep our costs down, and will directly benefit the many thousands of people with disabilities who visit Calvert Trust every year."

The turbine is one part of The Calvert Trust's long term greener future strategy, to reduce their reliance on fossil fuels and reduce their carbon footprint.

Fiona said: "We already have a wood pellet-fuelled boiler with an underfloor heating system in our Discovery Centre.

"We have planning permission for solar thermal panels to heat our swimming pool, and photovoltaic panels to generate more electricity.

"We have also installed the first chamber of a biodigester system which, when completed in the next five years or so, will generate methane gas that we can use for heating and cooking as well as disposing of waste products that we currently have to take off site."

The wind turbine, solar thermal and biodigester will cost £185,000 in total, and are being funded with £30,000 from EDF Energy's Green Fund, £45,000 from the Low Carbon Buildings Programme and £65,000 from Devon County Council.

Jo Steven, who leads on EDF Energy's Green Fund, said: "We are delighted to support the trust with this exciting project. We are committed to raising the profile of renewable energy at a local community level and the trust will give thousands of people a better awareness of these different forms of renewable energy.

"We are pleased visitors will benefit directly from the savings achieved through this locally generated energy, so more people can experience outdoor adventure and be encouraged to reduce their impact on the environment."