A LONG-AWAITED hydroelectric scheme in Oxford is set to start generating power before Christmas.

The £650,000 turbine – paid for by local investment – at Osney Lock will provide enough energy to power 50 homes.

Work to complete the power house at Osney Lock is on course to be completed in the next few weeks and the power could be switched on next month.

Barbara Hammond, who is heading the scheme, said: “We should be up and running before Christmas.

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“The power house is pretty close to being completed – the roof is being put on at the moment and it should be finished by the end of this month.”

Once the turbine house – built on the site to enclose the 11.5-tonne steel turbine Archimedes screw – is complete the scaffolding will come down and the process to switch the power on can begin.

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Dr Barbara Hammond

Dr Hammond said: “We need to make sure the Environment Agency are happy and then the network operator for the national grid will test the electrics before hopefully giving us our certificate.”

The team want to remove the security fencing around the site and turn the turbine into an interactive, public space.

The aim is for an interactive touch screen on the side of the house to take people on a historical tour of Osney Island and the Thames.

She said: “It’s very exciting and in many ways it’s why we’ve kept going with the project, to be able to get this public education out there.

“It will take people through the history of the Thames, the history of the Thames as a source of power and also the history of Osney Island.”

An online consultation into the use of the public space is being carried out by the team before they apply for funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund for the interactive facility.

The first community-owned hydro electricity scheme built on the Thames, it was originally due to be switched on by Spring of this year.

Last winter’s floods meant Environment Agency officers overseeing the project were needed elsewhere and work was delayed.

“We’ve been working on it for a long time, everything has to happen sequentially but we are looking forward to getting it up and running in time for Christmas.”

The power house will protect the screw’s control panel from the weather and the roof will be fitted with solar panels.

The turbine will generate 179,000 kwh a year – enough to power more than 50 homes.


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