Community Energy: Empowering Sustainable Practices

"Community Energy initiatives prioritize community benefit over profit, focusing on distributed energy supply, renewable energy generation, and energy efficiency. Organizations like MaidEnergy and Community Benefit Society are leading the way in creating a more sustainable future through community ownership and engagement. With a focus on renewable energy sources and innovative approaches to managing energy demand, these organizations are at the forefront of the growing sector. From solar arrays to low-carbon heat solutions, they are paving the way for a greener economy and a more environmentally conscious society."

• Community Energy
• Sustainable Practices
• Renewable Energy
• Energy Efficiency
• Community Ownership

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Uploaded on Mar 14, 2025 | 0 Views

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Presentation Transcript

1. Michael Beaven Director, MaidEnergy

2. Community Energy: distributed energy supply and use, community originated Community Energy: distributed energy supply and use, community originated and owned, and owned, prioritises prioritises community benefit over profit, democratic businesses community benefit over profit, democratic businesses Growing sector Growing sector - - c600 organisations, 70,000 members, 398MW capacity c600 organisations, 70,000 members, 398MW capacity energy generation, 796 energy generation, 796 fte fte, 225m investment since 2017 , 225m investment since 2017 Wide range of activity Wide range of activity renewable energy generation, energy advice, low renewable energy generation, energy advice, low carbon heat, energy efficiency, smart local energy systems carbon heat, energy efficiency, smart local energy systems

3. Community Benefit Society established 2011, volunteer led, first staff members funded through National Lottery Community Fund, Climate Action Fund round 4 Energy Installed and owns 15 solar arrays and 1 GSHP on 8 community buildings, supplying low-cost power and heat to sites, funded by 0.8m investment from the community Training ground for green economy 5 current Directors all now working in low carbon businesses, staff on apprenticeships

4. Current community owned 251MW solar PV. 133MW wind, 13MW hydro. 0.25MW AD Planned further 15MW roof-top + 78 MW ground solar, 92MW wind, 3MW hydro, 21 MW storage / heat / other Local ownership of large-scale renewable assets in law, but never implemented; Community right to supply Investigating low carbon heat networks coupled with community owned energy generation

5. Variety of approaches retrofit of buildings and managing energy demand Retrofit supporting residential users to make changes (People Powered Retrofit, SaveEnergy CBS, Draughtbusters), co-investment matching grant funding (Tollesbury Climate Partnership) community scale retrofit / decarbonisation (Rossendale Valley Energy) Innovation of approach eg combine loft insulation with volunteers clearing loft & trades boarding it Managing energy demand energy advice services, flexibility services (Low Carbon Hub, Bath & West CE), planning electrification of heat at community scale (Communiheat)

6. Community Community originated capital capital over over greatest originated and greatest need, and volunteer volunteer led need, people people with can favour favour areas with higher level qualifications led can higher level areas with qualifications with high high social social Easier Easier to operation operation of to generate generate interest of existing existing interest to to build build new new capacity capacity rather rather than than improve improve Lack Lack of others others of capacity capacity fits fits and and starts, starts, hard hard to to share share knowledge knowledge and and learn learn from from

7. Ethical issues of solar PV Ethical issues of solar PV - - Uyghur Forced Labour in the Solar Supply Chain, variance in embodied carbon, difficulty of tracing supply chain Fossil fuel industry followed tobacco misinformation playbook, risk that Fossil fuel industry followed tobacco misinformation playbook, risk that other incumbents who lose out follow same pattern (gas networks & heat other incumbents who lose out follow same pattern (gas networks & heat pumps?) pumps?) Can community energy help with communication & investment? Can community energy help with communication & investment? mistrust of government, finances constrained, of government, finances constrained, fear that private profit rather than providing best solution profit rather than providing best solution mistrust fear that private sector extracting sector extracting

8. The Voice of the Community Energy Sector | Community Energy England Community Energy South Centre for Sustainable Energy Reading Hydro Generating renewable electricity from the power of the Thames Reading Community Energy Society SaveEnergy Our Community Enterprise

9. Further Information Michael Beaven Michael@oce.org.uk info@maidenergy.coop www.maidenergy.coop