Spencer Group Backs Humber Renewables Awards 2012 (UK)

December 8, 2011

A SPECIALIST engineering group behind a ground-breaking £150 million green energy development is supporting the Humber Renewables Awards 2012.

The Spencer Group has been announced as sponsor of the Engaging the Community category in the awards, which take place in March.

Nominations are now being taken for the accolades, which will mark the success of people, businesses and other organisations that are contributing to the region’s renewables industry.

Spencer’s sponsorship underpins the company’s leading role in the area’s emergence as the UK’s green energy hub.

It comes shortly after Spencer secured planning permission to build a £150 million environmentally-friendly power plant called Energy Works, on the east bank of the River Hull.

Using a combination of sustainable technologies, the development will convert waste into sufficient energy to power 25,000 homes.

The business will operate the energy park and work closely with local education bodies, including the University Of Hull, to nurture the next generation of renewables engineers and entrepreneurs.

Spencer chief executive and founder Charlie Spencer, said: “We are proud of our track record of working constructively with local communities in the Humber and across the country wherever we operate. We believe passionately in working both for and with the community.

“Our expertise has often been employed to create or enhance community assets, for the benefit of the community.

“With Energy Works we worked closely with the local authority and community to consult so effectively that it prompted not a single objection from a local resident and won the support of the planning committee.”

He added: “Our sponsorship of the Engaging the Community award is an extension of our policy.

“We want to encourage and reward organisations that promote the benefits of renewable energy to the public at large and win their support in fulfilling the potential of green technologies.

Energy Works reinforces Spencer’s reputation for applying its core engineering expertise to the renewable energy field.

Flagship projects have included designing and building biomass handling facilities at Drax Power Station and the Port Of Tyne.

Spencer is also a major player in the Humber economy, with operations in Hessle and Barrow-upon-Humber.

The firm will shortly move into the prestigious One Humber Quays office building in Hull, which it has acquired as its new headquarters.

The Humber Renewables Awards 2012 are being hosted by specialist marketing company Footprint Renewables.

Eight award categories are available to enter and a panel of independent judges, drawn from the renewables industry and local business community, will select the winners, who will be announced at a dinner at The Deep in Hull on March 2.

Mr Spencer said: “We are delighted to be a part of the Humber Renewables Awards.

“The exciting potential for new jobs and investment from the development of green energy technologies and industries was a key reason for us selecting Hull and a site overlooking the Humber for our headquarters and for developing what will be the UK’s first sustainable energy facility of its kind in Hull.”

Nomination takes only a matter of minutes to do, using a simple, one-page, online form.

Communications provider KC Business is the headline sponsor of the event, with each of eight award categories also supported by a different business.

The categories are:

Humber Renewables Champion

Best Renewable Energy Product

Excellence in Renewables Training or Education

Renewables Innovation

Renewables Start-up

Humber Renewables Business of the Year (under 50 employees)

Humber Renewables Business of the Year (more than 50 employees)

Engaging the Community

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