Insider Media Limited

Profits at green energy company Ecotricity have slipped as it acquired 71 per cent of Forest Green Rovers FC for £700,000, latest accounts show.

The business, which again increased turnover for the year ended 30 April 2011, intends to make the Blue Square Premier side the UK's first green club.

It operates a 22 turbine-site at East Heckington, near Sleaford.

Pre-tax profit fell to £1.7m, compared with £3.8m in 2010, while turnover grew by more than 19.8 per cent to £44.2m.

Spokesman Stuart Brennan told Insider: "2011/12 looks like being one of the best yet for Ecotricity, with turnover expected to increase by 17 per cent to around £52m."

Founder of Ecotricity Dale Vince took a controlling interest in the Blue Square Premier side, Forest Green Rovers, in August 2010 for £695,000, becoming chairman two months later.

Plans are now underway to turn around the club's financial performance, Vince said in the directors' report of the accounts.

The ground is set to be solar powered and an organic pitch will be laid, he added.

Vince put a stop to players eating red meat and ceased selling all red-meat products at the ground in February.

Wind generation at Ecotricity was lower in 2010/11 than the previous year, which further reduced profitability, the directors' report said.

The company hopes to build more than 1,000MW of green electricity generation capacity and supply more than 500,000 customers in the next ten years.

Brennan added: "Since the start of May 2011, on the generation side of the business, we've opened the UK's first large-scale solar farm in Lincolnshire and installed another wind turbine to power one of the biggest manufacturers of diesel-engines.

"In addition we now have 19 windmills ready to go with with planning permission and another 78 going through planning at various sites around the country."

The company currently has 53 windmills at 17 wind parks across the country.

It ended the year with almost 30 per cent more customers than in 2010 up to 48,000. The figure has since risen to 55,000.

Ecotricity raised £10m during the year from publicly offered 'EcoBonds' to help finance new wind and solar park developments.

The bonds, which have an initial four-year term, will pay an annual rate of interest of 7 per cent – or 7.5 per cent for Ecotricity customers.

The green energy company currently employs more than 200 staff and has been building wind turbines and selling electricity across the UK since 1996.