SSE Airtricity Community Fund
Overview
Each year they promote active green behaviour among local communities through the Airtricity Community Fund – the largest such community fund of any energy generator on the island – which financially supports local energy-efficiency and sustainability infrastructural improvements.
The SSE Airtricity Community Fund has provided over £3 million to 800 projects in Northern Ireland since 2008. Through the programme, they provide voluntary annual funding to make a difference for communities close to their wind farms. Between September 2019 and 2020 these funds have awarded over £700,000, helping communities in Northern Ireland benefit from cleaner, greener choices. The SSE Airtricity Scholarship fund has provided over half a million pounds to students in higher education in Northern Ireland since 2014.
Eligibility
- Projects applying must be not-for-profit, community initiatives and within a 12-mile radius of the related wind farm.
- They should be targeted at improvements in energy efficiency, safety or sustainability.
The Airtricity Community Fund is paid out annually to all communities within a 12mile radius of any of their 5 wind farms across Northern Ireland and operates for the lifetime of each site. They place a particular emphasis on prioritising those communities within a direct 3 mile vicinity of each wind farm.
Projects they have funded to date include:
- Insulation and double glazing for schools, soccer clubs and community halls
- Replacement of windows and doors
- Energy efficient pitch lighting for sports clubs and sports halls
- Installation of solar lighting
- Composters for community projects
- Rainwater harvesting systems
- The installation of an energy efficient electric heating solution.
The fund for each wind farm:
- Starts one year after the wind farm starts producing electricity
- Runs for the lifetime of the wind farm
- Is set each year according to the electricity produced by the wind farm.