Why Repowering London Should Win a Business Green Award

It’s the day of the third annual Business Green awards and I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t give the project we worked on a hearty plug. So here it is: Repowering London should win the Business Green award for Renewable Energy Project of the Year.

Before I go on much further, I should give honourable mention to the competition, which is fierce indeed this year and is testament to the ambition and vision of all kinds of organisations. Let me be clear in saying that this is by no means a walkover. Sky, Diageo, SC Johnson and Land Securities have all made bold, green statements in the last year; developing large scale renewable energy to significantly impact the carbon footprint of their own operations. These companies all deserve high commendation for seeing the bigger picture around them and taking the leap ahead of much of the competition.

However, let’s not get ahead of ourselves... Whilst I believe these companies deserve a pat on the back, we also all know what a fantastic investment they have all made. This is easily as much a financial decision as a planet-loving one. Perhaps it’s in my interest that one of these projects wins and highlights just what a great investment these projects are for companies – more of whom may suddenly start calling up for quotes – but for me they aren’t the project of the year.

No. For me, I’d like to see an innovative scheme that wrings the most possible benefit out of the project.

This criterion doesn’t actually help whittle the competition down much further though. The projects that are left are actually superb in a business, environmental, community and a technological sense.

SunnyMoney, for example is the not for profit trading arm of Solar Aid. They sell various solar lighting products that displace the use of kerosene lighting in Africa. This cuts CO2 and saves people in the developing world money (the products pay for themselves in months) AND it also works as a financially sustainable social enterprise.

Solar Schools, by 10:10, is another exciting scheme that enables parents and teachers to crowd fund solar installations at their local schools, providing huge educational benefits as well as a sustainable long term investment for those that pledge, as well as green power for the school.

The Pelamis Wave Power demonstration project has the potential to be the renewable energy project of the century if it proves successful providing benign wave power, and the wind power project at HMP Standford Hill will provide renewable energy and over £10,000 a year to a local community benefit fund to assist other projects in the area.

Brixton Energy Solar 1, 2 and 3 with Repowering London is the project that we’ve been involved in. Repowering London is a not-for-profit organisation that works with local communities and councils to create community-owned, renewable energy power stations. They take on everything from cooperative community engagement and education, to creating local employment opportunities. Their enthusiastic team includes all manner of skill sets from engineering to accounting and they can guide communities all the way to installing their projects.

Matt Mann, of our London office, works with Repowering London directly on these projects. He tells me of the extreme dedication of the team, and the level of community involvement that is achieved.

Firstly, investment to pay for the installation of the panels comes mostly from local people investing in their own area. The sites for the solar panels are on social housing (which is a first for community-ownership) and a community energy efficiency fund has been set up to improve the housing stock of the Roupell Park estate, and Styles Gardens and Elmore House on the Loughborough estate, all in Brixton, using the revenue from the solar – helping to alleviate fuel poverty there.

We were also able, thanks to the engagement activities of the group, to enable people from the estates to do paid work placements on the sites installing the panels and to take on new skills and experience.

To date, the first two projects have generated well in excess of 50,000kWhs of electricity, all owned by the community, since they were installed.

The reason I think that this project should win, despite the clear brilliance of the others on this awards shortlist, is that this is a model that considers the environment, provides an investment opportunity and does not preclude the less well off from active participation and from gaining a tangible benefit. It’s win, win, win, win; if you will.

What’s more is that it’s a model that, with a little determination, absolutely anyone can follow. It takes some work (as I’m sure members of the Repower London team and those who worked directly on the installation will tell you) but the opportunity is there – right on your doorstep.