Community Energy

A Sustainable Solution for Reducing Energy Costs

and Carbon Footprint

Our community energy initative

Background

As the world continues to grapple with the devastating effects of climate change and the energy crisis, there is an increasing need to find sustainable solutions that reduce our carbon footprint and promote a cleaner, greener future, while at the same time reducing energy costs. One solution that has gained significant momentum in recent years is community energy, a grassroots approach to energy generation and distribution that involves communities working together to develop and implement renewable energy projects. In this article, I will share my experience of setting up a community energy project in my neighbourhood and explain how it works.

Our community

In my small community of Somerford Keynes, a group of like-minded individuals came together to form a community social enterprise (a form of not-for-profit) called Thames Head Energy. Our goals were clear – to reduce energy costs and carbon footprint while generating money for the community. To achieve this, we decided to focus on three pillars – community solar purchase scheme, community solar farm, and transitioning heating away from oil and gas.

Pillar 1 – Rooftop Solar, Batteries & EV Chargers

The community purchase scheme is designed to help homeowners in our area to purchase solar panels, batteries, and EV chargers at a lower cost. By pooling our resources, we were able to negotiate a better deal with suppliers, making it more affordable for homeowners to invest in renewable energy while making it simpler for them, and in future, we will be able to share tips and best practices based on a common solution.

After an extensive evaluation, we were delighted to choose a local supplier and use technology from an innovative British company.

The scheme has been a great success, with 130 homes expressing an interest in the setup phase. We launched the scheme in the new year and already have 50 homes requesting quotes. We plan to install during the spring and summer and be ready to expand to more nearby communities later in the year.

Homeowners taking advantage of the opportunity to switch to solar cut their carbon footprint and reduce their energy costs. A typical quote has a ~7-year payback and is equivalent to investing money in the bank with a ~14% interest rate.

Pillar 2 – Community Solar Farm

The second pillar of our project is to build a community solar farm. Our plan is to construct a community solar farm in a location that is nearby, yet avoids any impact on the views of our beautiful community. It will generate clean, renewable energy and provide a source of income for the community. We also hope to adopt the “Energy Local” model which will also reduce homeowners’ energy costs, but frustratingly this is quite complex due to government legislation, hopefully, the local energy bill that is currently going through parliament will make this easier.

We used the Crowdfund Cotswold platform to raise £16,000 plus a direct fund of £2,000 from the Parish Council. We were delighted by the generous support of individuals, local businesses, homeowners association, CDC and SKPC.

We are using some of this funding to get specialist assistance from a community energy consultancy which is helping us locate suitable locations and build a business plan.

Once we have confirmed a location and have a landowner agreement we will go through planning permission and then on to a community share offer to fund the building of the solar farm. This is a proven model used by ~400 community energy groups across the UK. Investments range from £100 to £100,000 each and typically pay back investors, with interest, over the 25-year life of the solar farm. Investors are typically a combination of individual and private investors and are popular with investors seeking Environmental Social and Governance (ESG) friendly investments.

Once completed, the solar farm will be a significant source of revenue for our community and a beacon of hope for a greener future.

Pillar 3 – Sustainable Heating

The third pillar of our project is to transition heating away from oil and gas to a combination of heat network and/or heat pumps. Heating is one of the largest contributors to carbon emissions, and transitioning to a more sustainable heating solution is essential for reducing our carbon footprint. Our plan is to work with CDC and other community groups to develop a heat solution that can provide heating to homes in our area. This may be a combination of individual heat pumps, similar to our solar scheme and possibly a heat network, which a UK leader in heat networks is doing a free feasibility study for us.

Heat pumps and heat networks are renewable energy sources that can extract heat from the ground, or water, or air to provide heating and hot water.

Combined with solar power from pillars 1 and 2 we hope to reduce energy costs as well as carbon footprint.

Broadening the community

Looking ahead, we hope to expand our community energy project to nearby communities, providing them with the same opportunities to reduce their energy costs and carbon footprint. We believe that by working together, we can make a real difference in the fight against climate change and the energy crisis and create a cleaner, more sustainable future for ourselves and future generations.

Conclusion

In conclusion, community energy is a grassroots solution to the energy challenges we face today. It offers a sustainable approach to energy generation and distribution and provides communities with the opportunity to work together to create a greener lower-cost future. Our experience with Thames Head Energy has been incredibly positive, and we hope that our project can serve as a model for other communities looking to make a difference.

For more information visit the Thames Head Energy website.

Mike McKeown

mike@mikemckeown.info