Our thanks to Ben, Dianne, Laurence, Frank and Sue for guiding us across the various elements - and the history as well as impact, of Stockport Hydro on a very hot Saturday mid-July morning ⚡️🌞

We learnt a lot and found the tour fascinating.

We were joined by over 20 people interested in Community Energy.

Some great conversations about the many benefits of community energy projects, as well as the challenges and how we can support community energy's growth in Greater Manchester.

We were introduced to the double Archimedes screws: Thunder and Lightening ⚡️🤩

10m long each, the double screws were a solution to a weir with "only" a 1.4m drop. It turned out advantageous when during a storm and flood in 2022 one turbine was rendered out of action for nearly a year, but the other continued to work producing 60% of the electricity capacity.

We also learnt that Stockport Hydro income offers ~4% return on their community shareholders, but most opt for their share to be put into an Environmental Fund.

Last year this fund was £10,000 and Stockport Hydro were able to support 30 small but impactful, local projects!

We ended this fantastic tour with a picnic in the grounds of Chadkirk Hall.

This year our Fuelling Greater Manchester events and tours of community projects are supported by Community Energy England through their Energy Learning Network programme.

If you want to join our MeetUp community to learn about upcoming Fuelling Greater Manchester events click on the red button below.