Ecotricity
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| Limited company | |
| Industry | Energy |
| Founded | 1 April 1996 |
| Headquarters | Stroud, England |
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Key people
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Dale Vince, founder |
| Products | Wind energy projects Solar energy projects Biogas |
| Website | www |
Ecotricity is an energy company based in Stroud, Gloucestershire, England specialising in selling green energy to consumers that it primarily generates from its 70 megawattwind power portfolio - the company prefers the term windmill rather than wind turbine. It is built on the principle of heavily reinvesting its profit in building more of its own green energy generation.
Ecotricity was started by Dale Vince in 1995, with a single wind turbine he had used to power an old army truck in which he lived on a hill near Stroud.
From this, Vince went on to commercially build wind-monitoring equipment, which the company still does today using the name Nexgen. Ecotricity then starting generation with a 40 metre turbine in the early 1990s, which at the time was the largest in the country.
In 2007 Vince ran an advertisement on the back page of The Guardian newspaper inviting Richard Branson to his place for a solution to climate change and a carbon-free breakfast. The ad ran the day after Branson appeared on TV with American former vice president Al Gore, who had managed to persuade Branson that climate change was an issue. The ad included Vince’s personal mobile phone number.
Ecotricity was a winner in the 2007 Ashden Awards for sustainable energy. The awards congratulated Ecotricity for its environmental contribution, saying 'The company's turbines are delivering 46 GW·h/yr of renewable electricity and avoiding around 46,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions a year. The installed capacity is expected to double by the end of 2007.'
In July 2009, Ecotricity started legal proceedings against French power company EDF Energy for the alleged misuse of the green Union Flag logo, used to promote EDF's Team Green Britain campaign. Ecotricity had previously used a green Union flag in its own advertising and claimed confused customers had contacted it to ask why Ecotricity was co-operating with EDF.
In January 2012 it was announced that Ecotricity has invested in the development of Searaser pump-to-shore wave energy machines, and in June said they were to be deployed in the autumn of that year. In October 2014 Ecotricity and marine consultants DNV GL were are moving from laboratory trials to sea trials.
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Wikipedia