SidEnergy is wound up as a community enterprise ... ... ... but lives on as the Sid Vale Energy Action Group

SidEnergy met up last week to consider where to go next:
Futures Forum: SidEnergy > AGM > Thurs 16th June

This is the message which accompanied the minutes to the meeting:

SidEnergy AGM

Attached  are the minutes taken during the recent SidEnergy Ltd AGM. You may be aware that at this AGM a motion to “Voluntarily wind up SidEnergy Ltd” was voted on, this motion was unanimously carried. This means that SidEnergy Ltd is no longer in existence and is in the final process of being wound up.

We would like to thank you all for your support and although SidEnergy Ltd may have gone the SidEnergy Community Energy group will continue to promote renewable energy and efficiency through programmes like the Open Homes and energy switching workshops and we look forward to your continued support.

Neighbourhood Plan

Some of you who live in the SidValley area will be receiving through the letterbox a consultation form asking for your thoughts and input into the “Neighbourhood Plan”. We would urge you to complete this form and return it at the earliest opportunity. This is your chance to have your say on the development of our community.

We are advising people to include anything that they feel relevant to themselves like public transport, loneliness, support facilities for the aged etc but also to think about including topics like biodiversity; renewable energy and energy resilience.

The Sid Valley Neighbourhood Plan boundary agreed by the planning authority East Devon District Council includes the Sidmouth Town Council Wards of Salcombe Regis, Sidbury, Sidford and Sidmouth. More information can be obtained from

www.sidmouth.gov.uk/index.php/neighbourhood-plan or

http://locality.org.uk/projects/building-community

Kind Regards

The SidEnergy Team

Here are the minutes to the AGM:

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SidEnergy > AGM > Thurs 16th June

In the context of changes to the support and funding of community energy projects, SidEnergy is having to rethink its future role:
Futures Forum: SidEnergy latest: lobbying for community energy
Futures Forum: SidEnergy latest: the impact of energy policy changes

SidEnergy will be meeting up to consider where to go next:

SidEnergy
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Knowle relocation project: Predicting energy price increases over the next 20 years

The chair of the Save Our Sidmouth group wrote to the Deputy CEO of the District Council asking for clarification on energy costs:
Costs of running Knowle, compared with those of running Honiton and Exmouth | Save Our Sidmouth
Futures Forum: Knowle relocation project: comparing the Sidmouth and Honiton/Exmouth options

The Deputy CEO of the District Council has just replied, as reported on the SOS blog:

Running costs of alternative sites for EDDC HQ

December 8, 2014 by sidmouthsid Leave a comment

Richard Cohen has today replied to SOS Chair Richard Thurlow, as follows:

Mr Thurlow

Thank you for your enquiry regarding the comparison of Annual Running Costs.

You are correct that during year one the differential in electricity and gas costs when comparing the Knowle with proposed new office at Heathpark and a refurbishment of Exmouth Town Hall is £50,200. Using a 2% pa general increase for inflation, but with 10% pa for electricity and gas the difference progressively increases to some £366,000 by year twenty.

Also, please be aware that in addition to electricity and gas costs there are other elements including Business Rates, Maintenance (planned, reactive, grounds), insurances and other running costs that have also been taken into consideration.

Regards

Richard Cohen
Deputy Chief Executive
East Devon District Council

Running costs of alternative sites for EDDC HQ | Save Our Sidmouth

We do need to look at the bigger picture...

'Saving energy' might be more than simply getting your bills down. It's about how much you spend on the energy you need to do anything - including the huge amounts of energy needed to construct a new HQ:
Futures Forum: Knowle relocation project: demolish or renovate?
Futures Forum: "The greenest building is the one standing" >> Why do developers prefer to demolish buildings than renovate them?

Meanwhile, getting the right information about the buildings currently occupied might be a good start:

WHY DO WE LOVE OLD BUILDINGS?

There is no doubt that old buildings were not built for energy efficiency, but does that make them unsuitable for current occupation?

If we look at the last recorded Display Energy Certificate (DEC) (see attachment below) for the Knowle, we see that the Knowle scores a creditable “C” rating on an A-G scale. However, there are several notable points arising from this, and the advisory report also attached below.

The most important of these factors is that the report expired on the 30/09/2009.

There are no apparent records of a more recent report, which begs the question, why not? These reports are provided to illustrate ways of improving energy efficiency, and the results can be improved year on year, so why has EDDC chosen not to?

Many factors affect the living or working in an old building. These include location, aesthetic appeal, suitability for purpose, the surroundings and the accessability to name a few. It is unlikely that any building will tick all the boxes but the Knowle can easily achieve all of these.

There is certainly no evidence that staff within the Knowle have any desire to move to Honiton.

Also a number of energy efficiency measures can be implemented to improve the building. There is no possibility that the carbon impact of a new build will represent a carbon saving in the next few hundred years, therefore a relocation should be seriously reconsidered.

Referring to the advisory report, if basic measures of insulation and energy efficiency

awareness training are undertaken, together with other techniques of solar thermal and solar PV which make good economic sense, combined with a proper energy policy there is no reason why the Knowle should not remain the home of EDDC for the benefit of employees, residents and the whole of Sidmouth!

Produced on behalf of the Sid Valley Energy Action Group

9/06/12

www.eastdevon.gov.uk/lprepsq3766._3766_-_3805_.pdf
Futures Forum: Knowle: old bricks vs new build: embodied carbon

It is actually very difficult to predict the cost of energy.

We have just seen a fall in the price of oil - and the possible consequences of that:
Futures Forum: Climate change: and lower oil prices
Futures Forum: Climate change and "the history of a fossil fuel addiction" ... Prof Iain Stewart @ the Sidmouth Science Festival

When it comes to predicting 'peak oil', this can be very tricky:
Predicting the timing of peak oil - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Futures Forum: Fracking: 'the party's over': Peak Oil now forecast for 2020
Futures Forum: Peak oil, peak soil, peak water... peak everything

Here is an assessment from the oil industry:
Energy Supply & Demand | Global Issues | Chevron

Nevertheless, we have got used to the idea of price increases:
How energy bills have soared - Telegraph
Energy bills rise by 37% in three years | Money | The Guardian

Here is an overall assessment from a solar panel company:

Inflation and Electricity Price Assumptions

Posted by: Chris Jardine in Blog

on Dec 08, 2014

Tagged in: Untagg

ELECTRICITY PRICE RISES

Predicting future electricity price rises is notoriously difficult, and energy economists the world over would find it difficult to predict prices 25 years into the future with any accuracy. Nonetheless, we do have some idea of what the future looks like, and can say the following with some certainty:

Electricity prices will rise strongly over the coming years because:

•Increased wholesale prices of gas used for electricity generation, as it is sources from increasingly far away(and potentially volatile) locations. International gas price is also linked to the price of oil, so price rises caused by peak oil may also start to play out through related markets such as electricity.

•The need to replace existing generation capacity – we have about 20GW of nuclear and coal capacity due to shut over the next 10 years

•The need to install high volumes of renewables to meet government and EU targets, incentivised both by the Renewables Obligation and the FiT itself

•The need to fund energy efficiency improvements to reduce CO2 emissions

The cost of wholesale gas price is virtually impossible to predict. But the effects of policy are more certain and have been studied by the Department of Energy and Climate Change. They predict that the price per unit of electricity will increase by 33% in the residential sector and 43% in the commercial sector between 2009 and2020. These are increases in real terms, and do not include inflation.

Joju Solar is therefore assuming electricity price rises of 2.9% per annum for residential properties and 3.6% per annum commercially

Whilst these values may seem high, it is important to note that these are price increases due to policy only, and do not account for any increases in the wholesale price of gas that may arise. This has been the key driver of rising electricity prices for the last 10 years and we expect this trend to continue as well. However, because this cannot be predicted accurately, we are deliberately excluding this factor from our assumptions.

www.jojusolar.co.uk/blog/pdf?id=141
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SidEnergy latest: share issue: energy switching: openhomes

Here is the latest newsletter from the Sid valley's energy group:

Newsletter No.5 July 2014

Membership Share Issue – Blast Off!

Last month at the VGS AGM SidEnergy successfully launched its membership share offer. Membership forms have been flooding in and we would like to thank all of you who have so far signed up. If you have not yet signed up and wish to, then you can do so via our website or by completing a form and returning it to SidEnergy c/o Easterbrook Eaton, Cosmopolitan House, Old Fore Street, Sidmouth EX10 8LS. If you want to know where you can obtain a form please contact 07592 803063 and we will attempt to get a form to you. Alternatively there may be copies available at the Easterbrook Eaton office.

Membership costs only £10 and the benefits of being a Member can be found on our website. Our application form also includes details on the benefits of membership.

Public Open Meetings

On Tuesday 8th July SidEnergy held its first public open meeting. The meeting was well attended and a lively debate and Q&A session took place. It is the intention of SidEnergy to hold more of these meetings with the next one scheduled for a date to be confirmed in September. However after October the meetings will be closed to non-Members. At the Members only meetings updates on projects and investment opportunities will be outlined.

We Are Not Lumicity!

SidEnergy would like to take this opportunity to clarify its position on the recent planning application for solar panels to be placed on a site at the East Hill strips. SidEnergy was not responsible for submitting the planning application. We had no involvement in the planning application and have no association or affiliation with Lumicity, the company that submitted that application.

It is true that representatives from Lumicity made an approach to SidEnergy for support of the planning application, however it was clear to the directors of SidEnergy that there was no long term community benefit and we were receiving confusing messages from various representatives within the company. For this reason SidEnergy did not support this planning application.

SidEnergy would like to make it clear that we will only support sensible, sustainable and realistic green energy projects that provide long term benefits to the community. Other companies in other parts of the country have been quite generous in their support for communities and we seek the same for the people of Sidmouth and the surrounding area.

“Show Us Your Bills” Energy Switching Workshop

These workshops continue and you can find us at the monthly Sidmouth community market in the St.John Ambulance Hall. The next one is on Saturday 9th August 2014 between 10:00 and 12:30. Why not come along and meet members from SidEnergy. Bring along a year’s worth of energy bills and we will do the number crunching for you and hopefully be able to show you the best deals that are out there for you.

Please Note We are only an advisory body, we will supply you with any relevant information but the final decision to switch will ultimately lie with you, you are under no obligation to switch to any supplier or act on any information supplied by SidEnergy at the workshop.

We will do everything possible to complete the consultation on your first visit, however if we cannot do this then we will arrange a mutually convenient date to complete the consultation.

Green Open Homes

In June SidEnergy held its latest event as part of the Green Open Homes programme. The event included a demonstration of technologies such as Biomass boilers; ground source heat pumps coupled to solar panels and a wood burning stove which feeds into a vented thermal store. The event was well attended and we would like to thank everyone involved. Details of future events will be emailed to you as and when they have been organized.

Forthcoming Projects

Get ready to be excited for SidEnergy is on the verge of a major announcement! We are currently carrying out feasibility studies at 5 sites in the area which involve Solar PV. Whilst 4 of these sites are small scale, schools, farms etc one of the projects will be big. It will require significant capital investment and there will be an opportunity for Members of SidEnergy to invest in the project. Details will be announced soon, so watch this space!

Come and meet the SidEnergy team!

SidEnergy will have a presence at the Honiton Show on Thursday 7th August. Why not come along and meet some of the team. We will be more than happy to answer any questions about SidEnergy or just chat generally about the state of the energy market, We would love to see you there.

SidEnergy | June 2014 Newsletter
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SidEnergy launch Thursday 14th November........................... cutting energy bills

A reminder in the latest Herald:

Sid Valley group seeks solutions to energy use

Sidmouth residents can explore energy-saving methods at SidEnergy's open-homes event on February 15 and 16.

Paul StrangeSaturday, November 9, 2013
11:30 AM

CUTTING energy bills and conserving the environment are key aims of a new community group, setting up soon in Sidmouth.

The new scheme is the brainchild of the Sid Valley Energy Action Group. SidEnergy – a purchasing scheme for homes and businesses in the local area – launches at 7pm on Thursday, November 14, at the Norman Lockyer Observatory.

The group says it will explore utility solutions pioneered in Norway. It also intends to negotiate favourable terms for energy conservation measures and home generation systems.

“In Norway, there is no standing charge for utilities,” said Derek Chant, Chairman of SVEAG. “Instead the pricing is worked on the basis of the cheapest rate applying to the minimum amount required to live. After that it gets more expensive.

“This promotes frugality in use of the utility - gas, electricity, water, sewerage – and it means that the poorest in society are not unduly penalised for the basic necessities of life.”

SidEnergy is also hosting an open homes event on February 15 and 16. People will be able to see properties with different constructions and energy-saving methods to show them what they could do with their own homes in order to reduce bills.

To register your interest in SidEnergy, contact info@sidenergy.co.uk

Sid Valley group seeks solutions to energy use - News - Sidmouth Herald

See also: Futures Forum: Norway's price structuring for energy bills... no standing charges and higher price-bands for higher use
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SidEnergy launch Thursday 14th November.......................... the agenda, the poster

SVEAG is launching the community energy cooperative SidEnergy next week:
Futures Forum: SidEnergy launch... at the Observatory.......................... Thursday 14th November

It will be a packed programme with presentations:

> A history of energy production in Sidmouth 

> Today’s Energy Issues in our Community 

> Community Energy Companies - Jake Burnyeat, Communities for Renewables

> An Energy Buying Club - and a look at the Open Homes project 

Followed by open questions from the floor to the Panel and looking at how the community of Sidmouth can go forward with the project.

Refreshments will be served!

And entrance is FREE!

Vision Group for Sidmouth - Sidenergy
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"SVEAG say 'unjustifiable' price rises by big companies will see another £1.5 million added to the estimated £15 million that leaves the area every year."

SVEAG are in the news again:

Energy price rise slated

Stefan GordonFriday, November 1, 2013

DRIVING forces behind a proposed community energy company for the Sid Valley are urging residents to go 'back to the future' later this month.

Sid Valley Energy Action Group (SVEAG) members say 'unjustifiable' price rises by big companies will see another £1.5 million added to the estimated £15 million that leaves the area every year.

They are frustrated by the 'inability or unwillingness' of politicians of all parties to offer a long term solution to the problems of energy supply and pricing.

The Herald reported last week how SVEAG is going 'back to the future' by creating SidEnergy - a community owned company that will promote energy saving, local generation and group purchasing of gas, electricity and biomass systems to replace oil burners.

SidEnergy will be launched at  a public meeting at the Norman Lockyer Observatory at 7pm on Thursday, November 14.

"All members of the community are invited to come along and have the opportunity to join the company for a small registration fee in the form of a shareholding," said SVEAG chairman Derek Chant.

"This will entitle members to enjoy the lower cost benefits of the group purchasing scheme.

"SidEnergy will also form partnerships with reputable local renewable energy companies to offer discount prices to members on home installation of energy conservation and domestic micro-generation schemes."

An 'open homes' event will also be held in February to enable people to visit properties where such technologies are already saving residents cash.

"All of this is aimed a keeping more of our money in the local community and preserving our environment," added Mr Chant.

Email: info@sidenergy.co.uk 

Home - Sidmouth Herald

See also:
Futures Forum: SidEnergy launch... at the Observatory... Thursday 14th November
Futures Forum: Back to the Future: SVEAG at the Observatory: Thursday 14th November
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SVEAG Sustainability Shield: presentation to Sidmouth College: the report

As promised:
Futures Forum: SVEAG Sustainability Shield: presentation to Sidmouth College: Friday 18th October
students at the College have been given awards for their projects on water:

Olympian hand out Sidmouth Sustainability Shield

Stefan GordonFriday, November 1, 2013 

shs Overall Sustainability shield winners

AN Olympic sailor handed out a prestigious environmental award to Sidmouth College pupils who excelled when it came to the topic of water.

Yachtsman Ben Rhodes helped mark the culmination of Sidmouth Science Festival by presenting the Sid Vale Energy Action Group (SVEAG) Sustainability Shield.

Overall winners from year seven were Jacob Spencer, Josh Gill and Richard Papworth thanks to their project entitled-Wave Power.

Other prizes were awarded to the winning year groups.

In year seven, Abigail Tinnian, Chloe Hadley and Eva Swann were recognised.

Chloe Drake, Mary Jane Babington and Caley Brown were singled out among year eight students. In year nine, Ben Ardley, Amy Cozens and Emily Cross received an award.

A separate prize was handed to a Sidmouth Pimary School group of Rebecca Tallows and Ellie-Jayne Waddell.

The overall standard of groups was ‘excellent’, said SVEAG chairman Derek Chant. “This is a credit to their enthusiasm and support of teachers and staff,” he added.

“This is a worthwhile award which focuses the attention of all pupils on issues that will face them in the future.”

The topic for next year will be ‘biodiversity’ and organisers are looking forward to judging imaginative projects once again.

Olympian hand out Sidmouth Sustainability Shield - Education - Sidmouth Herald
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SidEnergy launch... at the Observatory.......................... Thursday 14th November

More details on a big event coming up:
Futures Forum: Back to the Future: SVEAG at the Observatory: Thursday 14th November
which is all about local energy production:
Futures Forum: "Support communities who want to install renewable energy systems"

A Community Energy Cooperative

Press Release 21 October 2013 

Energy Price Rises Hit the Community

Once again the energy companies are hitting us with unjustifiable price rises. Over the next year around £15 million will leave the Sid Valley community to end up in the pockets of their owners and shareholders.  

But it was not always like this.  Up until around 50 years ago energy was produced locally.  Sidmouth Museum staff have kindly researched their records to find that coal was delivered by sea to the beach and distributed into the town for use in local heating and gas. This continued until the railway reached Sidmouth in 1874 when it is assumed sea deliveries ceased.  To enable gas to be delivered, gasometers were constructed in 1870 and 1926, and the town had gas lights by 1905.  Then, to take advantage of the coal deliveries by rail, the gas works was moved to the station site in 1939.  It remained in production until 1956 when the town switched to town gas and then to North Sea gas in 1971.  

Installation of electric lighting in the town led to the construction of the electricity works in 1923 producing power for the locally owned East Devon Electricity Company which was nationalised into SWEB in 1947 and then privatised to the French company EDF.  There were five water mills in the valley; Sidbury (which produced electricity), Sidford, Merrifield Mill (at the ford in Mill Street), Town Mill (where the main Post Office now stands) and Milltown Lane.  These energy generation and distribution activities gave employment to local people and kept a portion of energy revenues in the community.

Sid Valley Energy Action Group want to go “back to the future” by creating Sidenergy, a community owned energy company that will promote energy saving, local generation, and group purchasing of gas, electricity and oil.  If you want to secure your future energy supplies and cut your bills then come to the launch of Sidenergy at the Norman Lockyer Observatory at 7:00pm on Thursday 14^th November.

Vision Group for Sidmouth - Sidenergy
Vision Group for Sidmouth - SVEAG meeting
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SVEAG Sustainability Shield: presentation to Sidmouth College: Friday 18th October

On Monday 14th October, judging will take place at Sidmouth College for the SVEAG Sustainability Shield - the theme being 'water'.
And at 2pm on Friday 18th, the Shield will be presented to the winner:

Presentation of the SVEAG Sustainability Shield

courtesy of wikimedia.org

Prof Iain Stewart

The shield is awarded for the best environmental or sustainability themed projects

Date: 18th October 

Venue:  Sports Centre, Sidmouth College

The theme for the project being evaluated is 'water'.

Sidmouth Science Festival - Presentation of the SVEAG shield
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The Commons Select Committee on Energy and Climate Change is encouraging local production of renewable energy.
This is to be considered for the Sid Valley on 14th November:
Futures Forum: Back to the Future: SVEAG at the Observatory: Thursday 14th November

"Support communities who want to install renewable energy systems"

06 August 2013

Businesses, cooperatives, local authorities, schools and housing associations should be given financial support to install medium-sized renewable energy generating systems - such as solar arrays, wind turbines and district heating systems - because of the benefits these projects can bring to communities and the country as a whole, MPs on the Energy and Climate Change Committee have said.

• Report: Local Energy
• Report: Local Energy (PDF)
• Energy and Climate Change Committee

Speaking on behalf of the Committee, Dr Alan Whitehead said:

"Encouraging schools, businesses and local authorities to generate some of their electricity locally can bring big benefits to communities and the UK as a whole.

Businesses can reduce their energy overheads, locals can potentially benefit from cheaper electricity or heat, and councils can use projects to tackle fuel poverty, cut costs and reduce carbon emissions.

Medium-scale power plants could also help to boost energy security. Local heating schemes in particular could be helpful in balancing out peaks and troughs in electricity supply and demand by storing energy as hot water when there is a surplus of electricity being generated. If small-scale power plants fail it would cause less of an impact than if a large power plant fails."

Government provides support to households who install small-scale renewable energy systems through Feed-in Tariffs (FiT), while large scale projects like off-shore wind farms will soon be supported through new fixed-price Contracts for Difference (CfDs). Medium sized energy projects of between 10 – 50 Megawatts (MW) currently fall in the gap and will struggle to access support, being too big to receive FiTs yet too small to take advantage of CfDS.

Giving communities a stake in local energy projects has the potential to broaden public understanding of energy issues by encouraging energy-conscious behaviour and greater public engagement in carbon reduction initiatives, according to the report. Greater use of local energy could also enhance the security and efficiency of the energy system as a whole.

The report identifies a number of barriers that can prevent local energy projects getting off the ground. Securing funding and Power Purchase Agreements, connecting to the grid and overcoming public opposition can all prove difficult. Obtaining planning permission can be costly and time-consuming, and the risk of losing tens of thousands of pounds if permission is not granted is a huge obstacle for community groups or small cooperatives. Larger companies and utilities can shoulder these costs as they may be applying for a number of projects simultaneously, but smaller bodies must take considerable risks with no guarantee of recovering expenditure.

The MPs conclude that some form of support mechanism is needed alongside a comprehensive package of measures addressing finance, planning, grid access and advice. The Government must bring forward a proposal to support schemes within the 10-50MW range to incentivise the development of medium-sized projects which are not served by either FiTs or CfDs. The Green Investment Bank could provide seed funding and project development funding for feasibility studies, grid permits, etc to reduce some of the risk in getting projects through the planning process.

Dr Alan Whitehead MP said:

"We support the Government’s ambition to return decision-making powers to local authorities, but carbon reduction is a national priority.

Although it is unlikely that local energy projects will eliminate the need for larger, centralised power stations completely, with some Government support they could provide a significant proportion of the UK's energy capacity while reducing carbon emissions and increasing efficiency."

Government needs to do more to encourage local authorities to identify suitable areas for renewable energy development as recommended in the National Planning Policy Framework. Ministers should also encourage local authorities to develop clear guidance about what is expected from local energy projects, to reduce uncertainty and risk in the planning process. This approach would also help to prevent bad projects from coming forward. National level planning guidance should be provided on technical issues that hold up planning consent for wind turbines and other low-carbon technologies. This would help to improve consistency between different local authorities and ensure that only genuinely local issues were addressed through the local consenting process.

There are strong indications that some level of local ownership can help to boost support and reduce opposition to energy infrastructure projects. The MPs say that the Government should encourage industry to offer a stake to local residents for all new developments or consider the option of making a community ownership offer mandatory for all new developments.

Image: iStockphoto

More news on: Energy and environment, Energy

"Support communities who want to install renewable energy systems" - News from Parliament - UK Parliament
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