Policy & advocacy news
A bigger, fairer stake for communities
Community Energy EnglandThe Energy Independence Bill, introduced yesterday, delivers two things we have been pressing for as a sector for over a decade. Community benefit becomes mandatory for onshore wind and ground-mounted solar above 5MW, through legally binding agreements with minimum payments set in regulations. And the Community Electricity Right, first set out in the Infrastructure Act 2015, is revived. Communities across England will be able to buy up to 20 per cent of projects near them, up from 5 per cent. The threshold also falls to 1MW, bringing in smaller schemes for the first time. We welcome both developments, and we will keep working with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) on the secondary legislation that will fill in the detail.
Community benefit does most good when it is invested in community assets. The government proposes £5,000 per megawatt a year for wind and £700 for solar. We will argue for a level that holds its value across the life of a project. We’d like these funds to support community-owned generation, storage or retrofit, creating lasting assets and starting a flywheel of community wealth building.
On shared ownership, we recommend that the offer of 20 per cent be mandatory, whether or not a community takes it up in full. Community benefit should still be payable on the share that remains in commercial hands. There should be incentives for developers too. Our recent paper, Benefits of community shared ownership: the developer’s perspective, found that up-front investment through Great British Energy, greater weight in planning decisions and earlier grid connection could all make a big difference.
The Bill gives ministers the power to require suppliers to contract with community energy organisations. Alongside Modification P441, currently being considered by Ofgem, this opens a real route to market. The accompanying definition of community energy needs work. It should recognise the many shapes and sizes our members come in, while holding firmly to community governance and community wealth building. That way, the transition is owned more widely and more fairly.
Matt Vickers, CEO of Community Energy England, said:
“Communities have been told for a decade that the energy transition would benefit the places that host it. This Bill is a significant step in delivering on that promise. We’ll stay close to the details during the passage of the Bill. We’re asking the government to work closely with us to make sure the welcome ambition behind the Bill turns into lower bills, more control and a stake in the future of energy for communities throughout England.”