Subsidized windmills make farmers rich

You can't live on the wind, the saying goes. But the 32 farmers in the Wieringermeer, who recently sold their windmills to Nuon, probably think differently. That reports Business Insider.

Financial details have not been disclosed. However, it seems that the deal, which the Wind Collective Wieringermeer concluded with the energy company, made the owners rich in one fell swoop. "Nuon made an offer that we could not refuse," said Jaap van der Beek, chairman of the Wind collective.

The farmers opted for a lot of money, rather than future profits over a long series of years. Moreover, it is not the collective, but Nuon that is now paying for the necessary replacement of the windmills by larger and more modern ones, costing many tens of millions of euros. After the new wind farm is ready, the farmers are allowed to run their old windmills for another 5 years.

Earning from windmills, with subsidy
"Wind energy is big business in the Netherlands", acknowledges Axel Posthumus, director of the cooperative Windunie, advocate and advisor to about 250 wind turbine owners. According to Posthumus, the deal with Nuon illustrates how profitable wind energy can be for enterprising farmers.

That is not new. At the end of the 90s, arable farmers, livestock farmers and horticulturists in Flevoland, North Holland and Friesland in particular already discovered that windmills can pay off. Although the cost price of the electricity generated by their turbines significantly exceeded the market price for electricity, that loss was amply compensated by the government, which generously sprinkled subsidies.

This is no different in 2017. The government is investing heavily in 'renewable electricity'. The subsidy scheme from the end of the last century has since been replaced by the Stimulation of Sustainable Energy Production, called SDE+. In 2017 and 2018, approximately €12 billion is available each time. Many millions from that pot will go to windmill projects on the mainland. The period for which a project approved by the government can count on a subsidy has also been extended to 15 years.

Government offers stability
Whether SDE+ is attractive? Yes, according to Posthumus: "Entrepreneurs know where they stand. There is stability in the subsidy policy." When determining the subsidy, the market price of electricity is discounted (deducted from the subsidy). With a high market price for electricity, the subsidy goes to 0. But with a low price, the windmill owner is assured of a certain price and a return of about 7% to 10%.

Farmers are catching on to this, because it involves substantial amounts. A calculation example on the website of the Netherlands Enterprise Agency shows that a windmill costing more than €4 million with a capacity of 3 Megawatt, based on the subsidy scheme of 2017, can generate around €450.000 in turnover (of which €300.000 is a subsidy) per year. to generate.

Build a windmill soon, then? "It's not that easy. There's a lot to consider," says Posthumus. "The rules are very strict. Projects require a long preparation time. In that phase you have to bear the costs yourself."

In addition, government policy today is strongly focused on the construction of streamlined parks of 10, 20 or even more windmills with blades that reach a height of 200 meters or more. Such turbines provide much more power than the current, independently installed windmills of individual farmers, which often stand criss-cross in the landscape.

The interests of farmers are different from those of local residents
The increase in scale and high investments force land owners to cooperate. That is why farmers unite in a cooperative or BV. However, conflicts of interest are always lurking. After all, from a commercial point of view, every owner wants as many turbines as possible on his own plot.

Entrepreneurs often agree, practice shows. Most windmill projects fail or do not get off the ground for some other reason, according to Posthumus: "Lack of support among local residents." The complaints are legion. Such as horizon pollution, cast shadow of the blades, reflection of sunlight, permanent buzzing sound, depreciation of the house.

Plans for a wind farm can split a local community. In 2009 a select group of farmers in the Drenthe Veenkoloniën attacked the inhabitants of various villages with advanced plans for a large and lucrative wind farm. The locations of the windmills were already determined. There was no prior consultation with local residents. The entire project had already been discussed with Rijk.

The consequences were, to say the least, nasty. Former best friends got into a fight, neighbors stopped talking to each other, church communities fell apart and opponents sabotaged the maize harvest of one of the 'grabbers'. The project is at a deep stalemate. It is doubtful whether windmills will ever be built in the Veenkoloniën.

The lesson? "Initiators for wind farms would do well to consult with citizens at the earliest possible stage, in order to search for the best location together," advises Axel Posthumus.

Which also helps to gain support: local residents, or even the entire local community, to share in the expected profit of the park. Money can be the lubricant that keeps windmills running smoothly.

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