Ethical investment platform Ethex has launched a new community share offer from Wales-wide community-owned energy developer YnNi Teg.
The offer seeks to raise between £350,000 and £500,000 to fund the Penrhiw Fach wind turbine near Aberaeron, Ceredigion, giving individual investors the opportunity to target a 6% annual return while owning a stake in Wales' clean energy transition.
The launch comes as Community Energy Wales urges policymakers to remove barriers holding back community-led renewables, highlighting that Wales could be “at the forefront of a fair energy transition” if more projects like Penrhiw Fach were supported. At the moment 1% of Wales's renewable energy capacity is community owned.
The developer said that the Penrhiw Fach wind turbine will deliver benefits by:
- Powering homes: generating enough clean electricity to power approximately 750 homes annually.
- Cutting carbon: saving an estimated 9,750 tonnes of CO₂ over its 25-year lifetime.
- Driving local benefit: establishing a £200,000 community fund for Ceredigion, with ring-fenced support for hyper-local beneficiaries, including Aberaeron Town Council and local schools.
- Offering attractive returns: investors can target up to a 6% annual return. YnNi Teg’s existing projects have already delivered over 5.5%, demonstrating strong performance.
- Keeping Welsh energy local: enabling anyone from £100 upwards to invest, ensuring the energy and the profits stay rooted in Welsh communities.
YnNi Teg is actively encouraging investment from local businesses, third-sector organisations and community groups, alongside individual investors.
YnNi Teg’s first wind turbine in Carmarthenshire, launched in 2018 and now paired with a community solar farm, is already powering more than 1,000 homes, saving 1,850 tonnes of CO₂ annually and delivering £260,000 in community benefit.
The share offer closes on 11 March 2025 or when the maximum target is reached.
Chris Butler, Acting CEO of Ethex, said:
“This share offer arrives at a pivotal moment for Wales. Recent analysis from Community Energy Wales shows the enormous potential for community-led renewables if the right support is in place. YnNi Teg’s new project demonstrates exactly what’s possible: a strong financial return combined with meaningful social and environmental impact. It’s a chance for people across the UK to help shape a fairer, more resilient Welsh energy system where the benefits stay with local communities.”
