Community Energy Generation

Local Initiatives and Developments
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Which future course will key issues and trends take? What is the complex reality behind why they will be that way and are we happy or seeking to present smart realisable and ultimately sustainable solutions where needed...

Community Energy Generation Page Tags:

Community Energy Generation ....

Community Energy Generation covers aspects of collective action to reduce, purchase, manage and generate energy. Projects, Generation farms etc have an emphasis on local engagement, local leadership and control and the local community benefiting collectively from the outcomes. Community-led action can often tackle challenging issues around energy, with community groups well placed to understand their local areas and to bring people together with common purpose building a more harmonious relationship with themselves and their local environment.

Understanding KW,MW, GW, TWs....

Kilowatts, MW and GW: Understanding Electricity Measurements What is a watt (W)? Watts are the basic unit of power that is used to measure thermal, electric, and mechanical power. Examples of common appliances that will have their energy consumption measured in watts include light bulbs and computer monitors. What is a kilowatt (KW)? How much is a kilowatt? A kilowatt is another measure of power – the number of watts in a kilowatt is 1000. Conversions up to kilowatts happen when we talk about residential and commercial power. Some appliances, such as electric water heaters, will have their energy consumption measured in kilowatts. What is a megawatt (MW)? What can a megawatt power? When it comes to megawatts, it is usually used for measuring the output of a power plant, or the amount of electricity that’s needed by a city. According to Nuclear Regulatory Commission, a megawatt of capacity is equal to the electricity consumed by 400-900 homes in a year. There are 1000 KW to a megawatt or 1000000 watts in a megawatt. What is gigawatt? How many megawatts in a gigawatt? Gigawatts are useful for representing the capacity of large power plants or several power plants, including coal, nuclear and hydroelectric power plants. A single gigawatt is 1000 megawatts or 1 billion watts. What is terawatt? One terawatt is equal to 1000000 megawatts or 1000 gigawatts – it’s useful for conceptualizing how much energy is being used worldwide.

What scale....

For more significant local scale capacity say 5000+ homes or 15-25 MW jointly owned by citizens, communities, landowners and farmers, even commercial utilities becomes more the necessity. However, often the concern is that profit and scale are at the expense of original values and purpose. Scale often leads to being more ‘professionalised’ with the development of larger, more expensive capacity. This has meant that partnership models are increasingly common. Where 40MW+ say is a shared ownership partnership between a cooperative and the municipal-owned utility company or otherwise. Factors that lead to the development and growth in Community Power Generation are a strong domestic market underpinned by incentives provided through feed-in regulation; capital support for early-stage projects; standardised rules for grid-connection; and tax advantages. Different community groups may have different motivations and philosophies with a mixed wish in creating formal partnerships to scale up their ambitions beyond the local, specific nature of their activities. Nevertheless, most groups could benefit from working more closely with other organisations to achieve their goals. These include local authorities, renewable energy developers, other energy and non-energy businesses, housing associations, third sector organisations, farmers and other landowners. Community energy partnership models are often underdeveloped, in part due to the diverse, grassroots nature of community groups, which often require a flexible approach; forms of intermediary brokerage of parties, and so on. Things that may be required to combine with larger private or public sector organisations. Larger projects have the potential for good returns on investments, but may also have high costs and risks. Commercial organisations will often have skills, resources, investment and ability to hedge risk that community groups do not. Working more closely with commercial partners can be an effective way of achieving shared objectives – each party taking some of the risk, contributing finance and receiving financial returns. Ultimately the different scale of aims and objectives will determine what sufficiency looks like.

Potential Growth and developments....

Community Energy England....

ReWilding and....

Community Solar Power ....

Ouse Valley Solar Community owned Renewable Energy for East Sussex - Ovesco is developing Ouse Valley Solar Farm at Norlington Farm, north of Norlington Lane, Ringmer. The project will generate circa 17MW – the equivalent to power in excess of 4,000 homes. The solar farm will bring awareness of the need to reduce carbon emissions and to promote biodiversity as well as numerous education and environmental benefits to the community and wider area.

Wind Power Turbines and....

Domestic Power Generation introduces this further.

Battery Solutions ...

Battery Solutions introduces this further.

Electrolysers ....

Domestic Power Generation introduces this further.

  • Hydrogen UK
    • Electrolysis – Commonly referred to as “green hydrogen”, hydrogen production via electrolysis uses electricity to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. No greenhouse gas emissions are produced, although there may be emissions associated with the electricity generation.

XYZ ...

UK Government Community Energy Guidance A guide aimed at local groups who are interested in setting up a community energy project

The Value-Supply Chain.... BRINGING SUSTAINABILITY TO THE VALUE CHAIN Of course all sectors – not just agriculture – have a role to play, says Dexter Galvin, global director for corporations and supply chains at not-for-profit sustainability consultancy CDP. Companies need to look beyond their carbon footprints and tackle all their impacts, such as deforestation and water use, as well as emissions, he explains. “All of these things are utterly interrelated. We can’t look at them all separately, we need to address them all together.” By doing so, he adds, we start to help communities as well as the environment. This is the thinking behind the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), 17 global targets launched by the UN in 2015 and described by Mr Galvin as a fantastic framework to manage the symbiosis of these topics. “The SDGs concern everyone because they are about the future we want by 2030,” adds Mr Ould-Dada. “But we cannot achieve the SDGs if the private sector is not fully on board.” Building resilience needs collaboration. Otherwise, every time there is a problem, the chain breaks. Zitouni Ould-Dada, deputy director, Office of Climate Change, FAO Pointing to SDG 7, which covers energy, and SDG 8, which specifically refers to sustainable economic growth, he is adamant that companies have no choice but to pay attention to these issues because they affect their business. But, importantly, the SDGs can also help to guide businesses in putting sustainability at the heart of their operations. By addressing issues along the supply chain, Mr Galvin explains, businesses can start to have a much wider positive impact. “Organisations have to think beyond their immediate boundaries into their supply chains when they’re considering the environment,” he continues. “Procurement is a powerful tool.” Companies also need to respond to calls for action all along their value chain, he warns. Customers are becoming increasingly interested in what companies are doing and will readily speak out, as well as withdraw their custom, if companies fail to act. Alongside this potential reputational damage, businesses also need to consider their employees, many of whom expect their employers to act in a certain way and reflect their own views on issues around sustainability. Current problems in attracting and retaining staff bring this aspect sharply into focus, adds Mr Galvin. THE POWER OF COLLABORATION VALUE OF THE COMPANIES INVOLVED IN THE FIRST MOVERS COALITION, PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP SET UP TO DECARBONISE “HARD-TO-ABATE” SECTORS $0bn Mr Ould-Dada believes that collaboration between different sectors is of vital importance in order for businesses to transform their operations to work more towards shared societal goals. He is excited by the growing synergy between energy and agriculture, and the joint promotion of energy security and food security. By installing solar panels on farms, for instance, not only are farmers tapping into renewable energy, but crops benefit from the shade the panels bring, while they can also be adapted to collect rainwater. Partnerships are also tackling food waste, in this case linking up government, retailers and the third sector. A number of countries, he explains, have introduced laws to prevent supermarkets from throwing away food. Instead, they work with charities to redistribute the food to those who need it. “All the elements of the value chain are interconnected, and collaboration can strengthen this connection and its resilience,” he says. Issues such as food security and climate change are global problems that can only be solved by working together, adds Mr Ould-Dada. We also need to learn from events such as the pandemic, and prepare for the floods and the droughts that are hitting so many countries at increasingly regular intervals. “Building resilience needs collaboration. Otherwise, every time there is a problem, the chain breaks.” TBD Media's Vision 2045 films

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