Home » Shared ownership

Shared, local ownership

Shared ownership of local energy projects is something we’re offering as part of our Community Investment strategy.  This ensures that the people of Wales are able to benefit from the green energy the Welsh weather produces, on our journey to decarbonisation and energy security.

Our model for shared, local ownership is two pronged.

£68m investment from Wales Pension Partnership.

Designed to be inclusive and fair, our investment from the Wales Pension Partnership meets Welsh Government guidance on delivering shared ownership. Members of the 7 participating local government pension funds will benefit from the success of Bute Energy’s onshore wind projects; helping us to power homes, services and businesses with clean, green, Welsh energy. Each fund will have an opportunity to take a larger equity stake in each individual projects post consent, further increasing returns for local people.

Thanks to the Wales Pension Partnership, 388,000 Welsh Local Authority pension fund holders from across seven Local Authority pensions schemes will benefit from our projects. This is one of the largest public sector investments in Welsh clean energy to date.

25% of grant funding dedicated to community owned energy projects.

We’re listening to communities near our energy parks and dedicating 25% of our Community Benefit Fund to build, connect and gift projects to help reduce energy bills and generate income for the community.

These smaller scale generation projects could connect to the local distribution network – providing an income for its owners or to service a direct energy need.

This fund will be available for any constituted group, consortium of third sector organisations or public sector bodies, such as school clusters or Community Councils. The groups identified will be supported to own and manage the project (and income) for the benefit of their membership and wider community.

Technical support to develop these projects will be provided through the services of our contracted partners, as set out in our Social Value Standard. This will provide clarity on the feasibility, cost and generating capacity of projects prior to groups making an application for funding to construct and connect the project.

A Blueprint for Community Energy: Corwen Leads the Way

As part of our community engagement for the Moel Chwa Energy Park, we reached out to Corwen Electricity Cooperative and together, we explored how Bute Energy could support the next stage of their journey.

Read more