Tag: Community Energy Scotland

New opportunity for local groups to lease windfarm sites

Sharing the gains of clean energy

Local communities are to get new opportunities to benefit from renewable energy developments under a pilot scheme announced by the Scottish Government.

Community groups, from South Lanarkshire to the Highlands, will be given the chance to lease one of 10 publicly-owned Forestry Land and Scotland (FLS) sites with windfarms as they approach repowering.

The pilot, which makes changes to the Community Asset Transfer Scheme (CATS), will provide a protected window for local groups to make an asset transfer request to lease FLS sites to extend the operational life of the windfarms.

The new approach, developed with FLS, will help strengthen the community asset transfer process which enables communities to request to buy or lease publicly owned land they feel they could make better use of.

Other changes to CATS will see community groups given: 

  • advance notification of upcoming lease opportunities, so they have time to prepare asset transfer requests before sites go to market 
  • dedicated guidance for repowering projects, including support on financing projects, evaluation and governance  
  • targeted support through the Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES), including help to develop proposals

Energy Secretary Gillian Martin said: “Ownership and control of land is a powerful tool for communities to drive change and can help to develop local economies, provide activities and services, and boost community identity.  

“These new measures will make it easier for groups across Scotland to reap the rewards from renewable energy projects on Forestry Land Scotland sites with the potential to deliver real benefits to a local area.  

“It is yet another way that we are ensuring that communities can benefit from Scotland’s transition to renewable energy and that we are helping provide a just transition to net zero for people across the country.” 

Community Energy Scotland CEO Zoe Holliday said: “We have seen time and time again the transformation impact of land ownership and ownership of energy assets on communities across Scotland. 

“Right now, repowering of private developments represents one of the biggest opportunities to upscale the community energy sector at pace and meet the Scottish Government’s community energy targets; community energy groups are increasingly ambitious but gaining grid access continues to be a challenge, which is why taking on existing sites has so much potential. 

“Today’s announcement is a promising first step by the Scottish Government in starting to open up the public estate for large community energy projects and we look forward to working with them to continue to unlock opportunities for the community energy sector going forward.”

Updates to the Community Asset Transfer Scheme will be implemented by the end of the year, following further engagement with stakeholders, including Community Energy Scotland, community groups and developers. 

These measures will apply to projects with a maximum generation capacity of 50MW, reflecting the current scale of community energy initiatives.

The ten sites approaching the need for repowering are:

Scheme NameIndicative Repowering yearLA
Black Law2032South Lanarkshire
An Suidhe2033Argyll & Bute
Camster2035Highland
Myres Hill2036East Renfrewshire
Stroupster2038Highland
Burn of Whilk2038Highland
Clashindarroch2041Aberdeenshire
A’ Chruach2043Argyll & Bute
Beinn An Tuirc 32047Argyll & Bute
West Benhar2048North Lanarkshire

Investing in community energy

£9 million for community energy generation and energy efficiency improvements

Communities across the country will benefit from £9 million Scottish Government funding for measures to help cut energy costs and support the development of locally-owned renewable energy projects.

The funding – which builds on the successful Community Energy Generation Growth Fund pilot – will be used to scale up community energy projects across Scotland as part of a drive to cut carbon emissions, create local jobs, reduce energy costs and stimulate local investment.

It includes:

  • £3.5 million for a new Community Energy Generation Growth Fund to support communities to develop their own renewable energy projects – such as installing wind turbines and solar panels
  • £4.5 million to help local groups decarbonise their buildings through the installation of renewable measures such as heat pumps and solar PV panels, alongside energy efficiency measures, that reduce energy costs and emissions
  • £1 million for capacity building and development support to help develop and progress early ideas for new community energy projects

Announcing the funding at the annual Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES) conference in Glasgow, Acting Climate Action Minister Alasdair Allan said: “Communities must be at the heart of our transition to net zero and must see the benefits of this just transition.

“This transition is about both the outcome – a fairer, greener future – and the way we get there in partnership with those most likely to be impacted by these changes.

“That is why I am pleased to announce this £9 million investment from the Scottish Government will be available to communities through CARES over the next year.  

“Scotland has diverse communities – from those in our cities, to those in rural areas and on our islands. I am committed to supporting all these communities to take part in and benefit from the growth of Scotland’s energy sector.” 

Chief Executive Officer of Community Energy Scotland Zoë Holliday said: “The Scottish Government’s continued commitment to community energy is welcome news for groups across Scotland.

“The reintroduction of funding for stand-alone generation projects has the potential to lever in significant funds locally and play a key role in the just transition.

“We are also delighted to see a new fund focussing on capacity building for communities; we have been calling for such support to ensure that when it comes to the energy transition, no community is left behind.”

More information about Community Energy Generation Growth Fund.