A Dutch company is on Tuesday presenting a small wind turbine to the public which it says is virtually silent and produces half the electricity used by the average household.

The Liam F1 Urban Wind is a man-sized turbine in the shape of a nautilus shell which can be erected on a rooftop. It is priced at around €4,000, which the makers, a Rotterdam company called The Archimedes, say can be earned back in eight to 15 years through lower energy costs.

Richard Ruijtenbeek, one of the Liam’s designers, told broadcaster Nos the Liam will make sustainability ‘sexy’, which is why it comes in several different colours.

Small ‘design’ turbines are being developed and there are ideas for gold-coloured turbines for the Middle East. ‘This will turn small turbines into must-have objects with the advantage that they save energy,’ Ruijtenbeek said.

The first Liam has already been installed, on the roof of the port offices in Rotterdam. The turbine measures 1.5 metres across and weighs just 75 kgs.