A university has unveiled plans to build a wind farm to help protect itself against rising energy costs.

The University of St Andrews is seeking planning permission from Fife Council to develop the six turbine wind farm on farmland it owns.

Scotland's oldest university hopes to build the 12MW facility at Kenly Farm near Boarhills.

It said it had already carried out a three-year on-site research process and consultation with local communities.

A spokesman for the university said the wind farm was a "vital component" of its plan to "offset the rapidly rising and punitive national costs of energy".

Despite reducing energy consumption in recent years, the university's bills have trebled since 2005 to £5.4m a year.

"This increase in costs is equivalent to the salaries of up to 120 full-time staff at St Andrews and is a major financial risk for us," said Quaestor and Factor Derek Watson.

"Doing nothing is not an option. We would prefer to determine our own financial fate, than have it determined for us by the vagaries of international energy markets.

"Our consumption is on a flat line but we are being charged more and more for it."

The university hopes the wind farm on Kenly, the site of an abandoned World War II airbase, will meet the needs of the energy-intensive scientific operations at the North Haugh and the rest of the institution's electricity demand.

It has submitted an application for six turbines each capable of generating about two megawatts.

It is also holding discussions with local community councils about the possibility of forming community trusts to manage income from the proposed wind farm.

Originally Published On: www.bbc.co.uk – Original Article Here

Beijing: The fastest inflation in almost three years is driving Chinese investors to gold as bond funds face withdrawals for the first time since 2009.

Gold consumption surged 47 per cent in the first quarter from a year earlier, World Gold Council data show. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the world’s biggest lender by market value, said it has set up 1.4 million gold-linked savings accounts since introducing them in December. Investors pulled 800 million yuan (Dh452.59 million) from bond funds in the January-March period, after injecting 9.4 billion yuan in the previous three months, said Shanghai-based research firm Z-Ben Advisors.

"A lot of Chinese are buying gold," said Yu-Ming Wang, who oversees $28 billion as the head of Asian fixed-income at Manulife Asset Management in Hong Kong.

Bond rates plateau

Households are increasingly trusting in gold to protect the purchasing power of their savings as government efforts to tame inflation dim the outlook for property and equities. Government bonds maturing in 50 years yield about a percentage point less than the inflation rate, which at 5.3 per cent is similar to the 10-year yield for AAA corporate debt. Five-year time deposits at commercial banks are capped at 5.25 per cent.

Gold consumption in China totalled 233.8 tonnes in the first quarter, up from 158.9 tonnes a year earlier, the World Gold Council reported on May 19. Growth was more than triple the annual average pace of 14 percent since the nation’s market for the precious metal was deregulated in 2001.

Originally Published On: gulfnews.com – Original Article Here