£30 million on the table for UK towns to build their own wind and solar farms

Great British Energy has opened a £30 million funding pot to help local authorities and community groups across the UK build their own solar, wind and hydro projects, the first instalment of up to £1 billion promised earlier this year.

Great British Energy said on Thursday (17 September) that the money will kick off a programme intended to back more than 1,000 local and community-led clean energy projects across the country.

Communities and councils will own the projects outright, which means any profits from the electricity they generate stay in the local area rather than going to energy companies.

The state-owned company said the funding covers everything from solar panels on local buildings to village-owned wind farms and hydro schemes in nearby rivers.

Applications opened on Thursday for groups in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, while Scotland receives its own allocation through the Scottish Government’s existing community energy scheme.

The £30 million breaks down into four streams:

• A £20 million Community Fund offering grants to community organisations in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to test, develop and build community-owned clean energy assets
• A £5 million Partnerships Grant for local authorities in England working with community energy partners on joint projects
• £1.8 million for the Scottish Government to support community energy projects through its CARES programme, on top of more than £10 million provided earlier this year
• Up to £2.9 million for advice services that help local groups get community energy projects off the ground

Projects backed by the Community Fund must show that the community holds a defined legal and financial interest in the scheme, and that a set share of the benefits goes back to local people.

“I know many people are worried about climate change and feel like they’ve got no control over where their energy comes from, or how they can actually make a difference,” said Andy Burnham, Prime Minister.

“Whether it’s solar panels on a local library or a community-owned wind farm, we’re letting people decide what clean energy projects they want and making sure they feel the benefits of the clean energy transition in their pockets too.”

“Our vision is that every community should have the chance to build and own its own renewable energy,” said Dan McGrail, chief executive of Great British Energy. “These grants will give community organisations and local authorities the practical support they need to get clean energy projects off the ground.”

Ownership stakes in bigger projects

The government said it will set out further details this autumn on plans to offer community energy groups an ownership stake in larger renewable energy projects built by developers.

Great British Energy said this would bring Britain in line with Germany and Denmark, where communities routinely hold shares in local wind and solar schemes and receive a cut of the proceeds.

The company is also asking investors for information to help it design future funding products.

The launch follows a separate £16 million programme that has put rooftop solar on 157 public buildings across England’s Mayoral Combined Authorities, including fire stations and leisure centres.

Great British Energy said more than 150 of those projects have now switched on, and that together they could save up to £50 million on energy bills for reinvestment in local services.

“Community Energy England welcomes the GBE Community Fund as the first step in the £1 billion investment in community and local energy in the Local Power Plan,” said Matt Vickers, Chief Executive of Community Energy England.

“This will enable community enterprises across the country to deliver projects which will reduce bills, create a more resilient and cleaner energy system and most importantly keep the benefits of energy in the communities where it’s generated.”

Now read: UK and US supercomputers to work together on limitless clean energy