COVENTRY MESSAGE BOARD

It will develop green projects in the city



Up to £2 billion of investment will come to Coventry under a new 15-year energy partnership set to be signed off by councillors next week. Green projects such as a new solar farm will be developed through a joint venture between the city council and a private energy industry partner.

The scheme has been in development for 18 months and is part of the council's drive towards net zero, according to a report. Cllr Jim O'Boyle, cabinet member for jobs, regeneration and climate change, said the move will help create local jobs and tackle the "green skills gap."

"This is a major step and we will become the first city in the UK to take such positive action," he added. "This is going to have benefits for all of our communities, our businesses, our residents – the entire city."

Five key projects related to reducing emissions will be developed by the energy partner, a council report said. This includes solar panels for schools, decarbonising buildings and "strategic energy security planning."

It also covers a planned 30 MW solar farm by Lenton's Lane which is pending planning approval and could power 7,650 homes once up and running. At least three more decarbonisation projects will be worked on every year.

The move won't take competition out of the market and measures will be in place to make sure "best value" is delivered, the report added. The news comes amid wider plans by the city council to tackle climate change under its still-developing Climate Change Strategy.

A route map to net zero produced for the council found 700 ways Coventry's emissions could be reduced. But the council doesn't have enough expert knowledge or funding to deliver its "net zero ambition" alone, a report on the partnership said.

The new venture means the council can take a more long-term and joined-up approach to managing energy and decarbonising, it added. Decarbonising should also help cut the city's energy bill, estimated to be an eye-watering £635 million in 2023.

A private report with more details on the scheme will also be considered by the cabinet next week - and the partnership is set to be signed off formally next month. The energy partner involved will be named in the autumn, the council said.

Coventry Council to look at other sites for planned solar farm



Coventry Council will look at other sites where it could build the city's first solar farm after a controversial plan was refused. It will review whether the green belt land at Lenton's Lane is the best place for the project, a meeting heard.

Director of Innovation Colin Knight told councillors the authority is doing a "really important piece of work" on the scheme, known as a "sequential test." This "means looking at what alternative sites are there available," he added.

It means the council will explore whether there are other locations that are "appropriate." Speaking at a scrutiny meeting yesterday, (20 November) he said the test would be part of the decision-making process on the plans.

He also stressed that "no decisions are made," at the moment and "there's quite a lot of work being undertaken." It comes nine months after councillors denied the council permission to build a solar farm at Lenton's Lane.

Residents and campaigners had strongly objected to the plans to put 65,000 panels for 40 years on the green belt site in Longford. But papers for the meeting confirmed options for a solar farm at the site are still being developed as part of a partnership between the council and energy company E.ON.

It added further work on the city's "first" solar farm will take place over the next half-year and the scheme is expected to go back to planning in 2025. A solar farm is one of five key projects in the 15-year so-called "strategic energy partnership" between the pair, the report revealed.

The report also said options for the site are being looked at in response to concerns raised at the planning committee meeting in February. Mr Knight told councillors they will be looking at design options to help tackle these issues, which include the project's closeness to locals and impact on a farmer.

But he added they have to look "certainly through E.ON's perspective" at how that affect the "commercials" around the project. "Because clearly if you reduce the number of panels there that's going to have an impact on the business case," he explained.

Mr Knight also calimed a new energy plan for the city, drawn up as part of the partnership and fully funded by E.ON, shows a need for greener energy. "Through the Coventry energy plan, what's absolutely clear is that, you know, we absolutely need to invest in renewables," he said.

He added that solar panels are one of the best ways the city can decarbonise heat - a "key issue" - and added it is important for Coventry's energy security and could help lower locals' bills. Development work on the solar farm will continue over the next half year and it is set to go to planning in 2025, according to the meeting report.