Construction work got underway in March 2007 on North Yorkshire's first new wind farm in 15 years. The wind farm at Knabs Ridge lies south of the A59 Harrogate to Skipton road, west of Harrogate and is the first development of its kind for Harrogate.

The first four (of eight) wind turbines are now operational, following detailed commissioning work during April 2008 to ensure that the turbines have been installed correctly and are safe to begin generating electricity.

The remaining four wind turbines are being delivered to site and erected in July. We anticipate the wind farm becoming fully operational by the end of the summer 2008 and when this happens it will comprise 8 x 2 megawatt (MW) wind turbines and will power thousands of local homes with green electricity.

Planning permission was granted by the Planning Inspectorate in September 2005 following a two week public inquiry.

Project Manager Tim Daldry, said, "This is a substantial step forward for renewable energy provision in North Yorkshire. We have taken steps to minimise disruption to local people during the construction phase and will as far as possible minimise disturbance resulting from increased construction traffic during busy site periods. There will be no working on Saturday afternoon, Sundays and bank holidays and all construction will cease at 6pm in the evening."

The 2MW turbines, which comprise a 58 metre (m) tower with a 70 m rotor diameter, have been manufactured by REpower Systems AG.

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