Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

St Andrews University reveals £25m Guardbridge biomass plan

The former Curtis Fine Papers mill at Guardbridge.
The former Curtis Fine Papers mill at Guardbridge.

St Andrews University hopes to slash its energy bills and create an “economic centre in Fife” by building a £25 million “green” centre.

Rising fuel bills represent a “major threat” to investment for teaching and research, according to Scotland’s oldest university.

The proposed renewable energy project at Guardbridge would generate power through wood-fuelled biomass, then pump hot water four miles underground to heat and cool labs and residences in St Andrews.

The centre, at the site of the former Curtis Fine Papers mill, would also become a “knowledge exchange hub” and create employment.

The Scottish Funding Council is supporting the Sustainable Power and Research Campus (SPARC) project with a £10m grant.

Confirming that planning permission for SPARC was being sought, the university said that, alongside plans for a six-turbine wind power development at Kenly to the east of St Andrews, the scheme would support the institution’s bid to become the UK’s first carbon-neutral university.

University factor Derek Watson said: “It has taken us much longer than we originally anticipated to crystallise our thinking on a renewable energy centre and we are grateful for the patience and encouragement shown to us by the local community over the last three years.

“Guardbridge represents a major strategic step for the university.

“We are committed to becoming carbon neutral and this large industrial site lends itself to the creation of a range of renewable energies which are vital to our efforts to remain one of Europe’s leading research institutions.

“There is also an ideal opportunity to establish a knowledge exchange centre for spin-out, local companies seeking affordable accommodation and for prototype testing.

“We believe the diverse range of potential uses at Guardbridge has the capacity to re-establish this huge site as a key economic centre in Fife.

“We will consult closely with the community as our plans take shape.”

It is intended that the green energy produced on site and at Kenly will help the university protect jobs and ward off the effects of rapidly rising energy prices.

The Guardbridge mill closed on July 23 2008, with the loss more than 250 jobs.

Since it acquired the vacant site in 2010, the university has met Guardbridge Community Council regularly and members of Fife Council to discuss its proposals.

Work would start onsite in 2014 with the renewable energy centre complete and operational by December 2015.

The university will carry out public consultation on its proposals, including public meetings and drop-in sessions in Guardbridge and St Andrews.

Photo by www.aerialphotographysolutions.co.uk