Over £180k presented by SSE Renewables to Community Groups Close to Slieve Kirk Wind Park

SSE Renewables has presented over £188,000 to 63 community groups close to its Slieve Kirk Wind Park in Co. Derry-Londonderry.

Through its Community Fund programme, SSE Renewables makes annual contributions to community groups in the vicinity of its wind farms. The company has been donating to local projects around Slieve Kirk Wind Park since 2012, and this latest presentation takes its overall contribution in the region to over £2.3 million.

SSE Renewables is the leading developer and operator of renewable energy in Ireland and is the power behind leading greener energy provider and sister company SSE Airtricity.

This year marks a change in the name of the funding programme. Previously promoted under the SSE Airtricity brand, the programme will now be known as the SSE Renewables Community Fund. The change is designed to better link annual funding award payments from SSE’s wind farms in Northern Ireland to SSE Renewables, which owns and operates each of the company’s wind farm sites.

This year’s funding was used to support community groups as they begin to emerge from Covid-19. Due to the closure of halls and clubs due to Covid, groups were unable to bring in enough money to cover the running costs required to maintain the daily running. In order to support such needs, the funds were repurposed to support running costs such as rent, insurance and maintenance.

Bovalley Community Association received funding towards a funding co-ordinator to complete funding applications.

Michelle Donnelly, SSE Renewables Community Investment Manager, said: “to be able to support the communities in which we work at such a crucial time means so much. Communities have been the backbone for many during this pandemic supporting the most vulnerable in society. To ease the financial burden for groups and clubs is small in comparison to what they are doing in the communities in which they live.”

SSE Renewables Slieve Kirk Wind Park is the largest wind farm in Northern Ireland, producing enough green energy to power over 65,000 homes in the region.

Full list of groups receiving funding: