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Anna Harnmeijer, Jelte Harnmeijer sceneconsulting.com Community Energy Conference, 2015 New Government, New Dawn? The current state of community energy in the UK: prospects for a civic renewable energy transition Slide 2 Next ~15 minutes... (About us) Energy Archipelago & the Scene community energy database Energy ArchipelagoScene community energy database Current state of community energy Planned and operational capacity Project technologies and scales Geographical distribution Types of organisations involved Business models Cost and development Future prospects for the sector... Work ongoing References Slide 3 About us Information sharing solutions Online knowledge exchange Monitoring & Evaluation Supply chain networking in remote areas Project delivery Joint ventures between community organisations and landowners Community engagement strategies for commercial developers Community energy projects Research Energy governance International best practice Socio-economic impacts Current state of community energy Barriers & opportunities Business models and finance for community energy. Delivery Innovation Knowledge Slide 4 Integrated Theoretical Framework Slide 5 Energy Archipelago Launch Energy Archipelago July 2011Nov 2011Dec 2011May 2012Oct 2012 Official launch Scene Connect Portal UKERC EnGAGE Scotland enable survey of 97 community organisations in Scotland ECCI funds extension to UK- wide database of 405 projects Scene established First sector report published Late 2013 Regional data partners from Australia (CPA), South Africa and Netherlands come on board Feb 2015 Regional Data Partners from USA, Denmark and Mexico come on board July 2015 Development Slide 6 Integrated Theoretical Framework Energy Archipelago https://energyarchipelago.com A global and self-governed community renewable energy portal Aims to: Mediate inter-community networking and knowledge exchange, Provide insight to the scope and nature of the community renewables sector at national and global levels, Allow comparison of sector progress at regional and national scale, Inspire citizen engagement in the renewable energy transition and, Place community-led renewable energy in the public spotlight to maximum effect. Slide 7 Energy Archipelago Stories... North Yell Development Council "Da Gert" 4.5MW 2003-2015 Sleat Renewables 900kW 2003-2015 Castlemilk & Carmunnock Wind Park Trust 2.95MW 2012 Devon Community Wind Co-operative 3*900kW 2013- 2015 Portobello Transition Town & Greener Leith 800kW 2012 Waiting, waiting.... Picking up the pieces and starting from scratch.... Epic site battles... Site battles... Between CfDs and a hard place Banks Renewables & Windfall Development Trust 12MW 2015 Slide 8 From negligible proportion of the total renewable energy sector in 2005 (70MW to planning rejections ~140 million GBP investment in community-owned renewable energy assets Equivalent to powering ~65.500 UK homes. At least 252 projects have not reached planning as of 09/2015 Energy Archipelago Current state of community energy Energy Archipelago Current state of the community energy sector Slide 9 The perils of district heating systems The rise of community-owned ESCos and a small service industry Increasingly complex shared ownership arrangements The large number of projects stuck at early feasibility stage Striking absence of local authority involvement Slide 10 Energy Archipelago NO You now have a patchy list of organisations and projects, with plenty of data gaps. Use a digital and/or telephone survey to fill your data gaps. Use Qualtrics (liscence fee), Survey monkey or similar surveying software to design your survey Adapt the Scene survey to suit your needs You now have a patchy list of organisations and projects, with plenty of data gaps. Use a digital and/or telephone survey to fill your data gaps. Use Qualtrics (liscence fee), Survey monkey or similar surveying software to design your survey Adapt the Scene survey to suit your needs Are there existing directories / resources of relevant projects? Academic projects Umbrella groups (eg. Co-operative unions, social enterprise platforms) Government registers (eg. FIT registers, financial services authorities IPS register, relevant funding agencies). Are there existing directories / resources of relevant projects? Academic projects Umbrella groups (eg. Co-operative unions, social enterprise platforms) Government registers (eg. FIT registers, financial services authorities IPS register, relevant funding agencies). YES Collate data from community energy project websites Google for variations of community energy in the appropriate language. Collate data from community energy project websites Google for variations of community energy in the appropriate language. Are they publicly available? Collate data from publicly available directories, using the EA template in agreement with host Get in touch with them to pursue a data sharing agreement. YES Data collection Include projects based on following definition: renewable energy projects involving the active engagement and (at least partial) ownership by place-based social enterprises with a mandate for local socio-economic and/or environmental improvements (Walker and Devine-Wright, 2008). Slide 11 Current state of community energy Planned and operational capacity Slide 12 Research question Current state of community energy Project technologies and scales Slide 13 Current state of community energy Geographical distribution Data bias?! Community-owned kW in planning and in operation Slide 14 Research question Current state of community energy Organisation types Slide 15 A. Project Ownership WholePartial B. Investment Source for Community Stake Community Body Includes Local Development Organisations such as Development Trusts Community-led projects Revenue-sharing arrangements with local development organisations Individuals Includes Co-operatives of all kinds Wholly cooperatively- owned projects Wholly crowd-funded projects Revenue-sharing arrangements with co- operatives Current state of community energy Business models Slee and Harnmeijer (in press) Scotland up to 2013 England & N Ireland Slide 16 Current state of community energy Business models for shared ownership Haggett et al (2014) CharacteristicTypesExamples Source of community finance Gifted to communityFintry DT Community bodyLocal development organisations IndividualsCo-operatives, crowdfunding Legal structures Of project vehicle ManySPVs, LLPs Of community entity ManyDevelopment Trusts, charities, private limited social enterprises, bona fide co- operatives, community benefit societies Respective roles Community leadsNeilston Developer leadsFintry Timing of community investment Pre-planningP & L Turbines Post-planningEnergy4All model Through warrantsSeveral in development Slide 17 Research question Current state of community energy Business models Slide 18 Overall Approach Current state of community energy Cost and development Local organisations face certain common challenges that are likely to influence project costs negatively, esp. at early stages of development. Development costs: (1)Are more variable. (2)Have higher pre-planning costs. (3)Show a downward trend over time, converging over time with commercial cost levels. (4)Community-commercial partnership projects show a cost advantage on a community invested / community MW basis. Community projects take longer to complete than those in commercial sector, because they take much longer to get to planning (50% to 1100% longer). Community projects can be strongly disadvantaged through the higher risks of project failure, particularly at the feasibility stage. Characteristic of a fledgling sector Slide 19 Sector prospects The civic energy scenario 2015 Large power generators passively provide consumers with flexible electricity generation through one way power flows 32 major power producers own 83% total installed generation capacity Community RE represents ~0.3% of RE capacity Municipal generation ~1% RE capacity 2050 Large proportion of consumers actively engaged in intermittent generation and demand side response on reinforced and highly interconnected distribution networks Local energy schemes provide 50% total electricity Community scale CHP provides 60% of heating and 40% electricity requirements. Local authorities & OFGEM led regional energy planning(!) Strong local finance sector Partnerships between local energy schemes and regional ESCos Widespread awareness of RE as a domestic and community income opportunity. Reduced net total energy demand; high degree of household engagement and understanding in managing new niche technologies Increased storage capacity Utilities shift to transmission and system balancing RTP Engine Room (2015) A shift of expertise, planning, operational management and profit generation from national to the regional level. Slide 20 Overall Approach Work ongoing Local versus commercial ownership over time in relation to policy changes (prospects for a civic energy transition) Business models in relation to scale, development timescales, risk and cost Business models in relation to local socio-economic impacts Various country comparative studies Slide 21 anna.h@sceneconsulting.com Follow me on: InclusiveEnergy @AnnatSceneInclusiveEnergy@AnnatScene sceneconsulting.com energyarchipelago.com Slide 22 Realising Transition Pathways Engine Room (2015). Distributing Power: A transition to a civic energy future, Realising Transition Pathways Consortium. Haggett et al (2014). Supporting Community Investment in Commercial Renewable Energy Schemes, ClimateXChange Report.ClimateXChange Slee, B. & Harnmeijer, J. (in press). Scottish Community Energy. In: G. Wood, K. Baker (eds.). A Critical Review of Scottish Renewable and Low Carbon Energy Policy: Implications of the Independence Debate, Pelgrave: Macmillan. Harnmeijer J. et al (2015). The comparative costs of community and commercial renewable energy projects in Scotland. ClimateXChange Report.ClimateXChange References