“It wasn’t all plain sailing. The work load was huge.”
No 425 Posted by fw, March 3, 2012
Following is a reposting of Power to the people, a story cited in February Round-up of What’s Happening out in the World of Transition, published on March 1, 2012 by Laura Whitehead. At the end of this post is a 3-minute video featuring the launch of the community solar power station in Lewes.
Power to the People
All it takes sometimes is for one person to step forward with a BIG VISION
This is a story of how a community created its own energy company. It began with an Open Space workshop run by Transition Town Lewes mid-2007 called “How Will Lewes Power Itself (in a world without fossil fuels)?” The discussions were varied, and one focused on starting a local energy company. Howard Johns, who convened that group, had his own small solar company – Southern Solar – and, being a permaculturalist, had a big vision for our town.
Add a tendering opportunity and a dash of key players with “loads of passion”
Open Space Workshop
R> Soon after, the group learned that the local council was tendering for a service to distribute a domestic renewable energy grant scheme for devices such as solar water and wood burning stoves. They put in the bid – and won. Ovesco – the Ouse Valley Energy Services Company – was born. One of the directors – Chris Rowland – was willing to manage the non-profit company, for a part time salary and four others became directors. The key players – an engineer, a company CEO, a composer, a university lecturer – had no previous experience of running a local Esco – few people did – but loads of passion for it.
Huge getting-started workload – installing devices, providing advice, awareness-raising and more
For the next three years Ovesco’s main line of work was distributing these grants. To date they’ve installed over 200 energy generating devices. Ovesco has also, funded by the council, given free insulation advice and signposting for insulation for grants to over 1,000 people across the district. During this time, Ovesco directors also ran three Energy Fairs in the local precinct, with suppliers and talks, and helped TTL’s energy group run three Eco Open House weekends, showcasing energy savings in a range of real homes. There have been many invitations to talks, conferences and events and opportunities to try the energy bike invented by director Nick Rouse.
It wasn’t all plain sailing, though. The work load was huge, grant funding was changeable and Chris was doing a lot of work for free. But it meant he didn’t have to commute and said he was glad to have given up his commuting job and be living and working locally.
Rush to get Solar PV installed before government feed-in-tariff subsidy offer expired
Eco Open House
A couple of years ago, when the government introduced the feed-in-tariffs that offered subsidies for solar photovotaics (PV), Ovesco started to work up the case for a large solar array in town. Surveys showed the biggest roof belonged to the warehouse of our local brewer, Harveys. After much measuring and negotiation, Ovesco was ready to raise the money. But suddenly the government announced it was cutting short the offer and that solar installations would have to be up and running within three months. It was a stretch but the directors decided to go ahead and book the Town Hall. The only slot was a month ahead and they had to create prospectuses, get agreements from the financial and legal bodies and start to make the case to the community. Bear in mind, this was totally new territory for everyone. Liz Mandeville, the university lecturer, wrote the prospectus meticulously. This was a 25-year financial project; nobody wanted to let down our community.
Success — Britain’s first community-owned solar power station
As it was, Ovesco raised much more than the £306,000 required – within three weeks (about a quarter had been pledged before the launch event) and despite all sorts of fears, the 585 panel, 98 KwH roof went up just in time to meet the government deadline. We called it Britain’s first community-owned solar power station and we had a good party to celebrate.
Setback — government once again decided to cut short the feed-in-tariffs
Ovesco immediately began feasibility studies for three more major projects – two on schools and one on a community centre. But just as it was ready to launch another share offer, the government once again decided to cut short the feed-in-tariffs, effectively cutting Ovesco – and so many other community power stations – off at the legs. At the moment all those projects are in limbo while the legal process continues. This lack of government commitment to renewable has been a massive problem for Ovesco and many other pioneers – and I’ve felt quite shocked at the way this has been handled.
Two big challenges going forward – One, dependence on grant funding, and
Meanwhile, Ovesco has finally, after many years of seeking national funding and attending pointless conferences run by quangos – sorry – government-run agencies — been given funding through the Department for Energy and Climate Change’s Leaf grant stream, for a feasibility study for a combined heat and power and solar power project in Lewes. This funding will keep the show on the road for another few months.
Two, pressure from BIG ENERGyY to squeeze out small local companies
Directors on solar roof
The main challenge for Ovesco has been that it has always been dependent on grant funding. At present, there is not yet an obvious business case for funding community-run energy companies. It seems that grid parity for solar PV is only about two years away, though, at which point, Ovesco could start to compete with national companies on solar projects (depending on what goal posts are changed by then). Perhaps this is why the government has been under so much pressure from the big energy companies to curtail the success of small and community energy companies. Fossil fuels and nuclear power are subsidized by central government at a massively higher rate than are renewables, despite what tabloid press has to say. It’s all about power and who owns it.
Never-give-up spirit of ordinary people
But despite the government’s determination to maintain centralized control over provision of our energy supplies, there is much we can begin to do, now, as ordinary people, as the story of Ovesco so vibrantly shows.
***************
If you want to start your own community energy company, have a look at Ovesco’s useful toolkit here.
Photo credits: Open Space closing circle (Adrienne), Eco Open House event (Dirk Campbell), Ovesco directors with Harveys director on solar roof (Hudoq)
VIDEO LINK
- Uploaded by OVESCOIPS on Apr 27, 2011. Launch of OVESCO community solar power station in Lewes at Harveys’ brewery.
The Sun is the most important star in the universe for the people, animals and plant life here on earth. Without it we surely would not survive. There are many reasons why the sun is so very important to us! According to Tea Benduhn, the author of this book, “the use of the Sun’s light and heat energy is called solar power.” In this book there are four chapters:What is Solar Power?Sources of EnergyHow Solar Power WorksSolar Power in the FutureTea talks about many interesting facts. Did you know that there is such a thing as solar fabric and that a tent made out of it can power a computer? Did you know that there are cars that can run on solar energy? Did you know that the Sun is a renewable resource? There are many interesting facts in this book! This book is not only fun to read, but you can learn many scientific facts you may not have known before. The photographs are very interesting, especially the unusual looking solar car. This is an excellent beginner’s guide to solar power.
I’ve been looking to build my own solar electric system for a while. Not knowing much about the technology other than what I found by surfing the internet, I felt it was time to get some real information from a reputable source.I’ve been a fan of ‘For Dummies’ books for years: looking around my office now I can see three of them just lying on my desk and a further four in my bookcase. So buying ‘Solar Power Your Home for Dummies’ was an obvious choice.I bought two books on solar power: this one and one other, hoping that between them they would provide me with all the information I needed to make an informed decision as to what to do. The other book I found exceptional in that it has given me the technical know-how and the confidence to do the job properly. This book I found shallow and lacking any real useful information.The information it does give is clearly written, easily understandable and well put together. Unfortunately, it is no more than you can find by surfing on the internet for a couple of hours. I did not have the confidence at the end of reading this book that I could build a solar power system. Furthermore, much of the information is out of date and simply is not covered in enough detail to make it a worthwhile book.There are far better books around. This is one ‘For Dummies’ book that I wish I left on the shelf.
Energy prices continue to increase: no change to this situation appears on the horizon. In “How to Solar Power Your Home” those wondering if this is a good option for them have a powerful tool for investigation. I’m recommending this book due to three specific factors: education, honesty, and effectiveness.Educating readers leads many authors down the path of droning, boring prose. Fortunately, Ms. Maeda doesn’t fall into this trip. The information about the history or solar power, the pending developments and concerns for someone considering this option are concise, specific, and written to be engaging enough so you can stay on the ride for the duration.A basic education regarding solar power is clearly needed to make a reasonable choice and complete a successful project. Therefore the educational aspects of the book pair well with the honesty displayed. This book does not set out to convince readers that solar power is the ultimate answer to the questions of affordable, clean power.In many cases you’ll learn what qualities mean an installation is not a good idea versus those situations that are a good match for adding or changing to solar technology. The level of honesty, or reality, presented is one of my favorite qualities of this book. If you have a low tolerance for hype and marketing nonsense, you’ll find much to be appreciated in these pages.Not every location, home or person is a good match for the process of installing and using solar technology. Fortunately, you’ll have a better idea if you should move forward with a project thanks to reading the book. You can see how this dovetails with the effectiveness of the book. A variety of checklists, instructions and insights guide you to making your best decision and getting started on the process.Ms. Maeda even covers specifics with the potential to limit your qualification for rebates and other benefits through the process. Many people who want to add solar to their home or property many have little or no experience with contractors and building projects. As clearly established, a solar installation is a big deal. You don’t have to start the process blind if you take advantage of the information and suggestions included in the book.Even if you decide now is not the time to pursue solar power for your personal needs, $24.95 (retail) price of the book is an inexpensive way to find this answer. It’s also much cheaper than spending hundreds on assessments, consultations or thousands of dollars on a failed installation. Do-it-yourself books rarely come of my desk with 5-star rating. I’m pleased to say this one is the exception that proves the rule. “How to Solar Power Your Home” has earned a permanent home on my well-stocked shelves.