Utility OVO Energy has partnered with a community-owned wind project in Bristol to highlight the potential of community-driven solar energy projects.
The Ambition Community Energy (ACE) turbine, with which OVO has partnered, is one such project entirely owned by the Lawrence Weston community in Bristol. Energy generated by the turbine is sold to the national grid, creating around £100,000 a year in revenue for the local area.
OVO is now stepping in to manage the energy produced and help residents who are OVO customers receive half-price electricity on windy days in return for the additional renewable energy supply going into the grid.
As a result of this partnership, from 1 April 2024, people living in Lawrence Weston will be alerted by text messages that a Windy Day is taking place and will be encouraged to use energy on this day.
They will then be rewarded with Community Power Credits to their account to deduct money from their bills. It is open to all OVO customers with a smart meter in the BS11 postcode area.
Susie Leppard, Head of Renewable Energy at OVO, said: “We are joining up with a community-owned energy project to help bring bills down. We believe initiatives like this are a vital way for people to access cheaper, greener energy on the grid.”
This article first appeared on Solar Power Portal’s sister publication Current±.