Bergey Wind Turbine
Maybe the
title should be “Don't buy a Bergey
Wind Turbine !”, but feel free to make your own mind up
once you read the details. Thankfully the 2013 Defamation Act
has now come into force and I can tell this saga, as:- to the best of my knowledge it is completely true,
- all opinion is honestly held,
- and most definitely this is in the public interest.
Introduction
Our Government has recognised climate change is a real problem, and that we are overly dependent on fossil fuels. We have been encouraged as individuals to adopt renewable micro generation with subsidies which would previously have only been accessible to multinationals and huge projects. Many people now have photovoltaic (PV) panels which receive FiT (feed-in-tariff) payments and there is the same encouragement to adopt small-scale wind turbines.In order to permit generating equipment to be connected to the public electricity supply and therefore be eligible for FiT payments the equipment must be certified to meet relevant standards. The Government operates a scheme called the 'Micro-generation Certification Scheme' or MCS and both the equipment and the installer must be on an approved register. While this means extra cost it makes a lot of sense for individuals because generally, they don't have access to the detailed engineering design or test details necessary to verify the quality and performance of their prospective purchase. A PV installation or a wind turbine is a major investment and only likely to be made once by an individual, so there is not an opportunity to learn from any mistakes nor the possibility to write off losses against tax as is the case with a business. To ensure public approval a robust certification scheme is vital.
Summary
Something has gone badly wrong because I have purchased MCS approved equipment and it doesn't work. Initially I was hoodwinked into believing it must be due to a faulty tower, because the turbine had a "30 year track record", but that was just marketing - the turbine itself has very serious problems. These are not minor teething issues, it has multiple major flaws which make it unusable and potentially dangerous! It is unclear how my turbine received certification, it is so clearly and obviously not fit for purpose.I have since discovered that BRE Global
were paid directly by Bergey to provide MCS product approval.
MCS has no independent method of checking the scheme is working properly and
when things go wrong they simply ask the original certification company
to investigate, despite the potential conflict-of-interest. BRE Global
may be a 'UKAS accredited certification service' but read on to see what
they did once my problems were flagged up to them.Bergey's sole UK and Irish agents, SIAC Wind Energy Ltd, initially tried to fix the problems with my turbine, but they were grossly incompetent and dangerous to the extent that they nearly caused the tower to collapse.
SIAC eventually admitted they couldn't fix it and offered
some
of my money back, but only if I signed a 'release deed'. This turned
out to be a tool to force my silence with a significant gagging clause.
If I had signed the SIAC document I couldn't talk about any
of this ever again, nor could I even mention the existence of the
settlement document. If I violated the terms I could leave myself
liable for any lost profits from future SIAC sales !!
Serious Fraud Office definition of fraud:
'abuse of position, or false representation, or prejudicing someone's rights for personal gain'.
The general criminal offence of fraud can include:
One might think that because this turbine is certified and approved under
the government MCS programme there would be some concern over this failure.
However, after over a year of discussion I conclude that
the MCS programme is NOT credible and offers NO protection to consumers.
In reality it is administered by people who have little understanding
of fundamental engineering principles and then obfuscate, delay, hide
or divert blame; but most worrying MCS capitulate in favour of an
unscrupulous manufacturer when turbines are literally collapsing.'abuse of position, or false representation, or prejudicing someone's rights for personal gain'.
The general criminal offence of fraud can include:
- deception whereby someone knowingly makes false representation
- or they fail to disclose information
- or they abuse a position.
According
to the SFO
definition this may actually be FRAUD, at the
very least it appears as if the UK Government is operating a state
sponsored con-trick !!
definition this may actually be FRAUD, at the
very least it appears as if the UK Government is operating a state
sponsored con-trick !!There is a large amount of detail, some of it a little technical, as this saga has now run on for over two years. This write up is, resume of events in five parts.
If you are short of time, start with this page ('Introduction') and then jump straight to 'Part 3: Summary'.
PART 1 is the selection process, planning and building of a wind turbine.
PART 2 is where it goes wrong and SIAC Wind Energy Ltd show their nasty side.
PART 3 is a summary of the problems, some of which are quite damning. I have tried to be objective and am happy to list the good points too.
PART 4 is a follow up as I try to stop this happening to other people and discover a similar story in Skye where the SIAC/Bergey turbine fell down after suffering identical noise and vibration issues!
PART 5 is where I look at my options. Can I fix this myself? Possibly, but it will be a difficult, expensive and time consuming process.
