Oxford City Council signs pioneering investment deal with renewable energy firm
Green investment news – by Thomas McMullan
9th July 2014
A pioneering local green energy partnership will see over £2 million go towards community-owned renewable projects in Oxford.
The partnership will see Oxford City Council loan £2.3 million to social enterprise the Low Carbon Hub will to fund up to 25 renewable energy projects this year, including 1 megawatt (MW) of solar panels across over 20 Oxfordshire schools.
It’s the largest single investment the Low Carbon Hub has ever received. It heralded the project as a model for future local partnerships across the country, and said it hoped other counties outside of Oxfordshire will use the model “as a roadmap” for their own renewable developments.
“The £2.3 million loan finance from Oxford City Council will mean that we will be able to scale up our work considerably,” said Low Carbon Hub ceo Barbara Hammond. “It cements the partnership between the City Council and the Low Carbon Hub and endorses the work we are doing in Oxfordshire to create a low carbon future.”
Solar rooftop
It’s the largest single investment the Low Carbon Hub has ever received. It heralded the project as a model for future local partnerships across the country, and said it hoped other counties outside of Oxfordshire will use the model “as a roadmap” for their own renewable developments.
“The £2.3 million loan finance from Oxford City Council will mean that we will be able to scale up our work considerably,” said Low Carbon Hub ceo Barbara Hammond. “It cements the partnership between the City Council and the Low Carbon Hub and endorses the work we are doing in Oxfordshire to create a low carbon future.”
Solar rooftop
In addition to 1 MW of solar panels to be installed across more than 20 Oxford primary and secondary schools, the project will encompass at least 1 MW of solar rooftop panels on local businesses. Up to 5 MW is also set to be generated in the form of a ground-mounted solar array. The initial funding from the city council will be used by the Low Carbon Hub to construct the project, but after that ownership will be passed onto the community through a community share offer.
“We are grateful for the vision being shown by the City Council and are excited to be working with them to convert the rivers and rooftops of Oxfordshire into the power stations of the future,” said Hammond. “We hope that other counties will be inspired by this model and can use it as a roadmap for their own development of renewables.”
“We are grateful for the vision being shown by the City Council and are excited to be working with them to convert the rivers and rooftops of Oxfordshire into the power stations of the future,” said Hammond. “We hope that other counties will be inspired by this model and can use it as a roadmap for their own development of renewables.”
Oxford City Council and local investors plan to see a return of five per cent on their £2.3 million investment, while the Low Carbon Hub will receive an income via the Government Feed-in Tariff.
With the predicted returns being used to stimulate further renewable energy schemes, the project is being held up as more than a single localised experiment. “The income generated from these projects will enable the Hub to develop many more new renewable energy schemes,” said Hammond.
Government community energy strategy
The Government has been putting an increasing amount of focus on decentralised decisions regarding renewable energy. In January this year, it launched the Community Energy Strategy, which included the launch of a £10 million Urban Community Energy Fund to run alongside the £15 million rural community fund, previous announced in 2013. Both schemes will allow local communities to apply for funding of their own renewable energy projects.
Like this content? Please subscribe to our free weekly e-newsletter at the top of the page for more content like this.
Follow us on Twitter.
Related content:
