15 October 2009 09:39
E.ON helps Hebridean community centre keep warm with whisky this winter
Energy company E.ON has given a £22,000 grant towards the cost of upgrading the heating system at the Mactaggart Community Leisure Centre on Islay.
The Mactaggart Centre is Islay's largest and most visited facility, attracting up to 25,000 people each year, including local community groups and tourists. It includes a state-of-the-art swimming pool, fitness room and sauna.
The centre has used the cash to improve its heating system, which uses waste heat from the local Morrison Bowmore whisky distillery. By allowing more waste heat to be recycled the scheme saves on costs as well as carbon emissions.
Gary Scott, General Manager at Islay and Jura Enterprises, said: "Thanks to the grant from E.ON we've been able to reduce our fuel oil costs by 30 per cent as a result of the upgrade. Savings such as this are very important for the long term sustainability of this vital community facility."
Tony Jenkin Jones, Community Relations Executive at E.ON, said: "I'm delighted that E.ON was able to contribute towards such an exciting project, we were really impressed with their creative use of heat energy from the distillery.
"The Centre was looking to improve its heating system, to minimise its impact on the environment and to make significant cost savings, and we were more than happy to help them achieve this."
E.ON, one of the UK's leading renewable electricity generators, launched its Sustainable Energy Fund this year to help community groups and not-for-profit organisations develop more sustainable energy measures.
The Sustainable Energy Fund is backed up by a dedicated web resource which provides top tips on energy efficiency and sustainability and full details of how to apply for a grant. To access it go to
www.eon-uk.com/sustainableenergyfund
The next deadline for applications is 16th October 2009.
Ends
Notes to editors:
- E.ON is one of the UK's leading power and gas companies - generating and distributing electricity, and retailing power and gas - and is part of the E.ON group, one of the world's largest investor-owned power and gas companies. We employ around 17,000 people in the UK and over 92,000 worldwide;
- We're one of the leading green generators in the UK, with 20 wind farms located from Cornwall to Northern Ireland. We own one of the UK's largest dedicated biomass power stations at Lockerbie. Combined, our renewable portfolio generates enough green energy to power the homes in a city the size of Manchester.
For more information contact:
Deanna Mooney on 024 7618 3678