The Horizon Energy Cooperative proposes developing the Horizon Microgrid, a Virtual Power Plant integrating photovoltaic solar, combined heat and power, and possibly small scale wind and water power sources across a distributed network of social housing providers in the Greater Manchester region (currently represented by Stockport, Oldham, Trafford and Bury in the proposed initial partners). Some of the energy will be sold to the National Grid and revenues will be used to fight fuel poverty, stimulate training and jobs and assist the delivery of the Greater Manchester Low Carbon Economic Area.
The proposal is one of the UK's most ambitious renewable energy projects, promising to generate up to 250 MW of power from social housing sites in the region and bring in over €22 million in revenue and avoid the emission of two million tonnes of carbon.
A three year trial is currently being tested at concept stage after a successful joint submission with the overall Greater Manchester European Regional Development Fund bid. If successful the Horizon Energy Cooperative will consider rolling out similar schemes across the country with government agencies.
Andrew Melchior, managing director of the EIC Partnership, which is coordinating the pilot project, says that the initiative would be beneficial on two fronts, "driving down the costs of electricity and hot water for those in need of relief from fuel poverty, whilst also supplying community-generated green energy to householders in the North West of England".
The development team hopes to get as many as 125,000 homes in the North West involved in the three year pilot, using housing providers' grants schemes and the recently launched government feed-in tariffs. In addition, funding for the grid upgrades required to operate the scheme will be provided by the low carbon networks fund of the electricity regulator, Ofgem.
"We can now afford the central systems and software needed to operate as an electricity provider ourselves," he said, but warned that more generous feed-in tariffs are necessary in the longer term if further microgrids are to be developed.
To deliver the required methodology, project delivery partners and to understand the outputs, Horizon Energy Cooperative is currently engaging with Stockport Homes, Guinness Northern Counties Housing Association, Trafford Housing Trust, Six Town Housing, the Department of Energy and Climate Change, Ofgem, Energy Savings Trust, National Housing Federation, AGMA, NWDA, GM Procure, ENW, Pannone LLP, Sharp, Solar Century, Schuco, Co Operative Financial Service, the National Federation of Roofing Contractors, the National Home Improvement Council, the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and the University of Southampton STaR facility.
Melchior has also announced today that Siemens, Utility & DNO has joined the Horizon Microgrid development team, which is now working on regional spatial mapping and asset inventory.
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