Residents of Uhy in Czechia's Kladno District approve wind farm construction in referendum

Residents of the village of Uhy in the Kladno District backed the construction of three wind turbines within the municipality in Friday's referendum. There were 157 votes in favour and 23 against, with 60.54 percent of residents voting. A total of 181 of the 299 eligible voters took part in the referendum, and one ballot was invalid. The results are therefore valid and binding, according to information on the municipality's notice board.

„We have a council meeting on Monday, where we will endorse the referendum, and after that it will be up to the company to decide how to proceed,“ the village mayor, Václav Dobrovolný (TJ SOKOL UHY), told ČTK today.

There are a number of unknowns that the company will now have to address, he said, including various surveys. „But approval in the referendum is the first step, so they can even look into it,“ Dobrovolný added. He was surprised by the high turnout and the overwhelming result. Before the referendum, he had urged as many people as possible to take part. „As councillors, we did not want to make such an important decision on our own,“ Dobrovolný said.

The village, which has around 400 residents, could receive substantial revenue for its budget from the construction of the turbines. In addition to a one-off payment of 700,000 crowns, it would receive 2.9 million crowns a year for 30 years. Residents would also be able to obtain electricity at a 20 percent discount for 30 years. „We have signed a memorandum with the company, and if the project goes ahead, the contract will be concluded under these terms,“ Dobrovolný said.

Residents were asked one question in the local referendum: whether they agreed that the municipal council should support the construction of three wind turbines on four plots of land in the southern part of the municipality. A private investor wants to build three wind turbines with a combined capacity of 18.6 megawatts (MW). The total height of each tower is 199 metres. According to the project plan published on the municipality's website, the preparation phase would take 30 to 48 months, while construction, if approved, would take six to nine months.