ASA Adjudication on Energia in Natura Srl

Ad

A brochure entitled "Stribers Wind Farm - Public Consultation Technical Paper" featured information on wind farms in general and specific details of the proposed development. It stated "It will provide the equivalent renewable electricity sufficient to meet the needs of 1 in 4 homes within South Lakeland, in excess of 8,500".

Issue

The complainant, who believed the average capacity factor for wind farms in the North West of England was significantly lower than the one used to calculate the claims in the ad, challenged whether the claim was misleading and could be substantiated.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Response

Energia in Natura Srl (Energia) said the claim was based on published figures for the number of houses in South Lakeland, the projected generating capacity of the development, an average annual domestic electricity usage figure recommended by the Renewable Energy Association, and a general capacity factor of 0.3.

Energia noted the complainant's assertion that the capacity factor should have been 0.248, the average capacity factor for Cumbrian wind farms.  However, they said they had used a capacity factor of 0.3 because they believed that using the average regional capacity factor under-represented an important aspect of the project.  Energia believed that, by showing the benefit of the scheme at a capacity factor of 0.3, they demonstrated its comparative importance in reducing the impact of climate change and showed the value of using the significant wind resource available at the proposed site location.  

Energia said there were approximately 123 turbines installed in the North West of England that were used in the calculation of the average capacity factor.  They pointed out that eight of the turbines at Caton Moor Wind farm were of similar size to those proposed at the Stribers site. The remaining 115 were significantly smaller in size, blade length and capacity.  Energia pointed out that that resulted in differences in the swept area and height of the turbine rendering them unrepresentative in terms of a comparable capacity factor for the proposed wind turbines located at Stribers.  

Energia said they intended to use a turbine design with the very latest technology that was more efficient than the older, smaller turbines that were prevalent in the region.  Energia pointed out, for example, that the wind farm located at Caton Moor in Cumbria had recently been repowered using larger 2 MW turbines, similar to those proposed at Stribers, which replaced the previously installed 300 kW machines.  The capacity factor at the site had been between 0.168 and 0.184, but following repowering, the operational capacity factor had risen to 0.308.  Energia maintained that there was clear evidence that larger and more modern turbines were capable of an increased capacity factor.

Energia sent details of wind speed monitoring that they had carried out at the Stribers site from September 2008 to March 2009. They pointed out that the minimum average hourly measured wind speed at 53 m was greater than 7 m/s. They said they extrapolated the wind speed records to the hub height and concluded that an average wind speed at hub height over the same period was 8.69 m/s.  That data was based on the measurements they had been taking at the site with a meteorological mast they had installed in September 2008.  Energia pointed out that, from a review of the available power curve for the wind turbine they intended to use, the average wind speed they had measured could equate to a generation of approximately 1100 kW each hour and a capacity factor of as much as 0.44.

Energia also provided calculations that incorporated their wind monitoring data with long-term wind modelling for the area. They pointed out that it resulted in a capacity factor of 0.32, which they believed demonstrated comprehensively that 0.3 used for the ad was an understatement. They maintained that they had reduced the figure to retain a conservative assessment of the capacity factor and account for the lack of a full year's wind speed data.

Assessment

Upheld

The ASA noted the ad stated that the proposed development would provide the equivalent electricity to meet the needs of a quarter of the homes in South Lakeland and considered that readers were likely to infer from the claim that Energia could demonstrate that with a significant degree of certainty.  We noted the complainant's concern over the claim relying on a capacity factor of 0.3, which, we understood, was often recommended by renewable energy organisations. We also noted Energia's argument that the current average capacity factor for the region, 0.248, was inappropriate for the proposed Stribers development, because that average included many older, smaller turbines, and that they pointed to the nearby Caton Moor wind farm as a more appropriate indicator of the likely level of generation at Stribers.

We considered, however, that without robust data to demonstrate with reasonable certainty the likelihood that the capacity factor would be 0.3 or higher at the Stribers site, the use of the recommended capacity factor of 0.3 was not in itself adequate to substantiate the claim. We noted the 0.3 capacity factor was often recommended by wind energy organisations but also few on-shore wind farms presently operated at that capacity.

We noted Energia had carried out wind speed monitoring at the Stribers site and that the details of that monitoring over several months, coupled with an analysis of wind modelling data, demonstrated that the capacity factor was likely to be in excess of 0.3. However, the CAP Code required marketers to hold documentary evidence to substantiate their claims before an ad was distributed. We noted the ad was distributed in November 2008, only two months after Energia had commenced wind speed monitoring at the Stribers site. Although Energia had subsequently obtained what we considered to be adequate substantiation for such a strong claim, we were concerned that that information could not have been fully available to them at the time the ad was distributed. We therefore concluded that the ad breached the Code.

The ad breached CAP Code clauses 3.1 (Substantiation) and 7.1 (Truthfulness).

Action

We told Energia to ensure that they held the appropriate substantiation before publishing future ads. Where such data was not yet available, we told them to make clear if claims were instead based on general projections.

Adjudication of the ASA Council (Non-broadcast)