Project Overview
Exeter Community Energy (ECOE) now has ten rooftop solar installations at Shillingford Organics, Wonford Community and Learning Centre, Exeter Central Library, Great Moor House, Exeter College, Pinhoe Rd Baptist Church, Glasshouse Lane Medical Centre, Westbank Community Health and Care, The Beacon Community Centre, and The Beehive Community Complex in Honiton. Following the closure of the UK’s feed in tariff scheme to new applications in March 2019, ECOE is now looking for new solar power projects that can be profitable.
ECOE is also helping people across our region who are in, or at risk of, fuel poverty reduce their energy consumption and bills in the Healthy Homes for Wellbeing project. It is also developing a green retrofit scheme so that people able to pay can also make their homes more efficient, ultimately reducing their bills and their impact on the climate. Following the likely closure of the UK’s feed in tariff scheme to new applications in March 2019, Exeter Community Energy is now looking for new solar power projects that can be profitable.
Overall ECOE’s aim is to bring together people who are interested in building a sustainable future for our community, who care about climate change and the depletion of resources, and who want to reduce fuel bills, promote energy efficiency and address fuel poverty.
Project Impact
To date ECOE has deployed ten solar installations across Exeter and Devon, and is still looking to facilitate more.
ECOE has also developed a Community Fund from the revenue generated from their Solar PV projects in order to give back to Exeter and the communities of Exeter through additional grant funding.
Through its ten solar power installations ECOE has generated over 1.4GWh to date and saved over 447tonnes of carbon from being emitted. Over the projects’ 20 years lifespan, they expect to make over £170,000 available to the Community Fund, which is available for local community groups to apply for funding for projects that help to save energy and/or help to alleviate fuel poverty.
The Community Fund has supported a diverse range of projects to date, most often helping install more efficient lighting in community buildings. In 2017-18 the Music in Devon Initiative launched their solar-powered PA via funding from ECOE’s Community Fund, which as well as displacing fossil-fuel-powered energy allows them to perform in off-grid locations. In 2018-2019, ECOE helped fund the first publicly available electric vehicle charger in Topsham. The 2019-2020 fund helped support projects from 11 applicants during the pandemic, including educational and community transport schemes. For 2020-2021, ECOE was able to award funds to three applicants. There is still grant funding available on a rolling basis this year and we encourage organisations to apply.
The Healthy Homes for Wellbeing project helps fuel poor residents across Exeter, Mid Devon, East Devon, Teignbridge and Torbay. The team of six home energy advisors support 150 households per month, with an average household saving of £1,000. In 2019-2020 the project ran 16 monthly drop-in clinics across the region, as well as community talks, events and training for frontline workers.
For more information visit: https://www.ecoe.org.uk/