An Aberdeenshire community group has secured a £4,000 boost from Scottish Water thanks to its green energy use.

The water company paid £4,206 to Mearns Community Council as a share of the revenues raised from a wind turbine which was recently installed at its Laurencekirk wastewater treatment works.

The payment is front ended for the community, which is the amount they would be expected to earn from the turbine at the plans over the next 20 years.

Scottish Water Horizons installed the 80kW turbine and is a subsidiary of Scottish Water which aims to drive the company’s green agenda forward.

It generates 160,000kWh every year and has the potential to offset approximately 60% of the treatment works’ electricity consumption per annum.

Andrew Macdonald, head of Scottish Water Horizons, said that they are pleased to be sharing the benefits of this renewable scheme to improve facilities and wellbeing for the local community.

Macdonald continued: “Investing in renewables supports economic growth, helps Scottish Water to become a low-carbon business and delivers tangible benefits for local communities over the longer term.

“The turbine at Laurencekirk is one of several renewable technologies now operating on our assets, with several treatment works now generating at least all, and in some cases more, of the energy they need to operate.”

Meanwhile, Chris Toop, General Manager of Energy at Scottish Water, said that Scottish Water really makes an effort to put community at the centre of its work, both in terms of the early stages of consultation, in terms of whether it’s appropriate to put these technologies on our sites.

Toop added: “As we work through planning and implementation of the scheme and its great there is now the benefit to the local community at the end of that to be able to invest as they so wish.”