Glastonbury is less than a week away. People up and down the country are packing up their tents and wellies ready for the Arctic Monkeys, Elton John and Lizzo. But what are we excited about? A wind turbine!
A Green Gift For Glastonbury
Octopus Energy has installed a purple wind turbine at Worthy Farm, just weeks after agreeing the deal with Glastonbury festival. The new ‘try before you buy’ scheme will see the turbine power the food stands at the festival before being passed on to the next lucky community.
Alongside the turbine, Glastonbury will be powered by battery and solar power. It’s expected they’ll generate 300kWh of clean energy. That’s about enough for 300 fridges.
Greg Jackson, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Octopus Energy Group, spoke about meeting Emily Eavis, the Glastonbury organiser…
“When I met Emily I was immediately struck by so many shared values. What was planned to be a short meeting went on for hours as we discussed what makes for a better world.
“I am excited to be able to not only generate green energy at the Festival but to work together for the long term too.”
The turbine was put up in just one day. Of course, this wouldn’t work quite the same way at scale, but it goes to show how easy it can be with the right cooperation. So often it seems that the major obstacle we face in rolling out renewables isn’t about technology or materials but bureaucracy. This challenge is largely sidestepped by the straightforward collaboration between Greg Jackson and Emily Eavis in this case. If only it were so easy for the government!
Conclusion
It’s so great to have green energy being enthused about by such a high profile event. Especially given the challenges we face in the transition to these technologies, with anti-renewable campaigns, greenwashing and an electrical grid that isn’t ready. Do you think this turbine will make a difference or is it just a publicity stunt?
