New concerns for future of pioneering renewable energy centre

Martin Shipton

Fresh concerns have been raised about the future of the Centre for Alternative Technology at Machynlleth after its latest accounts said there were doubts about its status as a “going concern” charity.

CAT was opened in 1973 in the disused Llwyngwern slate quarry, where it occupies a seven-acre site.

When it opened, it was seen as a pioneering centre in Europe for the study of renewable energy and sustainable development. It runs educational programmes for schools as well as postgraduate degree courses validated by the University of East London and Liverpool John Moores University.

But in recent years it has faced financial challenges, and In January 2024 staff at CAT signed a vote of no-confidence letter to senior management after a shock redundancies announcement.

The letter described the institution as a “sick organisation” with management that are “defensive, aggressive, secretive and disrespectful”.

The letter was written after the visitors’ centre was shut with immediate effect, with management blaming the closure on financial difficulties and a “drop in footfall”.

As a result of the closure, 14 members of staff were made redundant, leaving 85 staff and 10 volunteers. The letter accused senior management of handling the closure without consulting staff.

Publication of the centre’s annual report and accounts for 2024-25 on March 26 2026 – 54 days late – have raised renewed concerns.

The annual report states: “Despite positive developments in recent months, which are covered in more detail in the Trustees Annual Report, the cash position remains challenging. We continue to lack free reserves. Although we are conservative in  estimating future fundraising and student fee income within our cashflow forecasts, and although the aggregate value of these likely sources exceeds the level required to sustain operations (meaning that CAT does not need to secure every projected income stream), it is still the case that failure to secure multiple high value likely sources of income could alter the charity’s Going Concern position.

“Furthermore, it has been necessary to seek a loan from WCVA in order to support cash flow. For these reasons, we conclude that there is a material uncertainty relating to the Going Concern position.  At this time, and acknowledging the material uncertainty, the trustees consider that CAT is a going concern and it is appropriate to prepare the accounts as such.

“Total income from charitable activities reduced to £1.765m, compared to £2.410m in 2024. The two main factors behind this were the fall in [education] income caused by falling student numbers and then impact of a full year with our visitor centre closed to casual, day visitors. The latter affected income generation in several other areas of our operations, particularly retail.”

Emergency bridge loan

A source who drew our attention to the publication of the overdue accounts told us: “CAT has zero free reserves, negative working capital, and is currently surviving on an unsecured emergency bridge loan from the WCVA [Wales Council for Voluntary Action] just to manage cash flow.

“They’ve had to condemn and close their on-site Eco Cabins due to severe fire and electrical safety risks, which kneecaps their lucrative residential course income. Worse, over the recent period, their Co-CEO has departed, and approximately half of the Board of Trustees have resigned. The executive bandwidth to manage a turnaround is practically non-existent.

“CAT has a £13.5m allocation from the Mid Wales Growth Deal (MWGD) for their “Cynefin” redevelopment. They managed to get their Outline Business Case (OBC) approved in December 2024 and have been drawing down minor funds for scoping and ‘Early Works.’ It is hard to see given the context of organisational distress how they can possibly pass the UK Treasury Green Book’s Full Business Case (FBC) to unlock the main capital blocks:

“To draw down the £13.5m, they must legally secure £11.5m in private match funding. It is hard to see how an institutional donor or private investor will commit £11.5m to a charity carrying a ‘going concern’ warning and zero reserves.

“The Green Book requires strict proof that the organisation has the governance structure and executive capacity to deliver a highly complex £25m construction project. With the Co-CEO gone and a hollowed-out board fighting daily cash-flow fires, they simply cannot pass this threshold.

“That £13.5m of vital regional investment is now effectively paralysed. The Section 151 officer for the Growth Deal board would be committing career suicide to sign off on releasing it to an entity in this state.

“If CAT collapses, 140+ postgraduate students are left stranded (an immediate baptism of fire for Medr’s “learner protection” mandate), and a 50-year-old Welsh sustainability icon goes into liquidation just as the Welsh Government pushes its Net Zero 2035 and Future Generations agendas.” Medr is the Welsh Government’s body responsible for funding and regulating the tertiary education and research sector in Wales.

Optimistic take

The trustees of CAT have a more optimistic take, stating in the annual report: “The financial statements show a positive net movement in funds in 2024-2025 compared to the previous year. The balance sheet remains in a net current liabilities position, although net liabilities are reduced in 2025 at £2,149 compared to £28,991 in 2024. It remains the case that CAT is in a stronger position looking forward than it has been in its recent history.

“Positive factors include:

* Progress with plans for the redevelopment of our site.

* Commitments to CAT from major donors, funders and public sector organisations.

* Increasing and improving partnerships with other organisations across Wales and beyond, with strong bids for significant funding already submitted and more planned in the coming months

* The worldwide pressure to move to Net Zero and a growing recognition of the biodiversity crisis.