Ambitious plans to upgrade a wind farm on the Lizard peninsula are set to be unveiled this weekend.

The £20 million project at Goonhilly Downs could generate enough "green" electricity for over 10,000 homes - enough to power all the households in the Helston and Lizard area.

The scheme would involve replacing the farm's existing 14 turbines with seven taller turbines, although details of exactly how tall they would be have not yet been determined.

Helston-based Cornwall Light and Power, which owns and operates the Goonhilly site, says "re-powering" the wind farm would enable it to produce five times its current output.

The company's chief executive, Neil Harris, said assessing local opinion on the project was a priority.

He said: "Although we are at a very early stage, with much work to do on design and layout, we want to share our plans at the earliest opportunity with the entire community.

"We know that the site can comfortably accommodate a new scheme on these lines, and after 14 years of sustained success at Goonhilly we know there is an abundance of wind to be caught and turned into electricity.

"The wind farm has become part of the landscape, has no effect whatever on farming and other land use, has caused no ecological harm and has attracted no complaints about noise."

The wind farm, which began production back in 1993, currently generates enough electricity to power almost 2,000 local homes.

The proposed scheme would dramatically reduce the dependence of The Lizard on fossil fuel and nuclear generated electricity, although homes would remain connected to the national grid to ensure continuity and reliability of supply.

Statistics show that consumption of non-renewable electricity, with its associated carbon emissions, is 25 per cent higher on the peninsula than the national average.

Mr Harris added: "Nowhere in Britain is the use of renewable energy more desirable than on The Lizard. Gas is not piped into the area and therefore the use of electricity in homes and businesses is unavoidably higher on average than elsewhere."

No time-scale has yet been set, but those behind the project say it could be constructed and operational as early as 2009, provided a planning application could be submitted by the end of this year.

More than £1 million would be spent on reinforcing the local electricity infrastructure, upgrading the electricity wires supplying local people, which also distribute the output from the wind turbines.

As well as supplying electricity, the wind farm is used as a teaching aid by the University of Exeter in Penryn, Helston Community College and Mullion School.

Cornwall Light and Power, which is already in discussions with Kerrier district council, RNAS Culdrose and Goonhilly earth station, is holding an open day between 11am and 5pm on Saturday to give the wider public a chance to view the proposals.

Computer-generated images showing what the wind farm could look like if the scheme went ahead will be on display and staff will be on hand to answer any questions.

Details of the project will also go on display at various public sites around the Helston and Lizard area.

Comments can be made via the company's website at www.clpwindprojects.co.uk and printed questionnaires are available from its offices at 58, Coinagehall Street, Helston.