16th October 2024
Signalling a new chapter for community-owned renewable energy, Westmill Solar Co-operative, REScoop MECISE and REScoop.eu have completed the first-ever cross-border co-operative investment in Europe, in partnership with energy co-ops from Spain, France, Belgium and the UK.
The £5 million, 10-year refinancing loan for Westmill Solar, a 5MW community solar farm in Oxfordshire, demonstrates the innovative and important role the co-operative movement plays in the transition to renewable energy. Community energy ensures the benefits flow directly to citizens, at a time when the need to tackle climate change has never been more urgent.
The investment, finalised earlier this month, is part of REScoop MECISE (Mutual for European Communities Investing in a Sustainable Europe), a pan-European initiative to mobilise citizens across borders in the fight against climate change. REScoop MECISE is supported by REScoop.eu, the European federation of energy communities which represents a growing network of 2,250 energy cooperatives across Europe and their 1.5 million members.
By borrowing from other co-operatives rather than traditional banks, Westmill Solar—one of the UK's first and largest renewable energy co-operatives with over 1,600 members—joins a network of like-minded European communities committed to sustainable investment.
Tom Parkinson, Chair of Westmill Solar, said: "Westmill has always been innovative, ground-breaking, and different. Borrowing from other co-operatives, rather than from banks or private equity, directly connects us to an international community of citizens committed to sustainable energy. Our board believes this loan will not only support Westmill but also shows the huge future potential of REScoop MECISE to transform the way community energy is funded. We're confident it will be the first of many such partnerships."
The co-operative movement, an increasingly important alternative to private equity, aims to challenge the traditional energy investment model by empowering ordinary people to lead the energy transition and directly own a share of their local energy-generating assets.
Working through REScoop MECISE, five different co-operatives from four European countries with a collective membership of over 170,000 people are sharing the Westmill investment, democratising energy ownership across Europe.
Karel Derveaux, for Ecopower, president of the REScoop MECISE board, said: "This is a genuinely groundbreaking deal - a network of the biggest energy co-operatives in Europe using the strength of their finances to raise funds in a completely new way. It required close cross-border collaboration which wasn’t without its challenges! But we proved that the cooperative approach, with all the due diligence and legal safeguards you would expect, can achieve the same level of professionalism as any other major investment."
REScoop MECISE and its partners expect that the Westmill loan is the launch pad for an exciting new funding mechanism to establish a sustainable, citizen-driven alternative to the traditional energy model.
Dirk Vansintjan, President of REScoop.eu, said: "Europe works best when we work together—across borders but with shared values. European co-operatives are proving we can create a radical yet professional alternative where communities and citizens, rather than wealthy investors, shape the future of energy. We are united in our concern about climate breakdown, and this collaboration shows that by working together, we can take meaningful action."
Westmill Solar’s involvement in this landmark deal reflects a broader desire among energy co-operatives to redefine the investment model for the energy transition that gives citizens a key role in shaping Europe’s future energy landscape.
Not only does the new loan represent the spirit of pan-European collaboration, but it also provides attractive fixed-cost funding for Westmill, putting the 12-year old community solar farm on a firm foundation for the next decade.
Westmill community solar farm was built in 2011 adjacent to Westmill community wind farm which was launched in 2008. Since then, Westmill Wind and Solar have welcomed over 12,000 visitors to the site, supported academic research into climate change and biodiversity and developed an educational partnership for their members with the Centre for Alternative Technology.
The new loan will enable Westmill to develop its operations (e.g. by exploring the potential to install batteries alongside the solar panels and for local supply) and increase investment in other community-owned renewables. Alongside this, Westmill will continue with its substantial annual community funding commitments for other sustainability projects.
Since the community funding programme was launched in 2014, Westmill has allocated over £825,000 to fund more than fifty projects ranging from developing free education materials for schools, insulating nearby community buildings and supporting local sustainable