Getting the most from community generation - an economic and technical model to control small scale renewable community generation and create a local energy economy

This paper describes work to develop a ground breaking economic and technical model to match small scale generation and demand in a small community and create a local energy economy. This involves the use of unlicensed supply and a new type of Community Organisation for Renewable Energy (CORE). The work takes the village of Ashton Hayes (which is aiming to become carbon neutral) as a case study. By monitoring the LV feeders and individual buildings over several months, the team is building up a picture of the load profile in parts of the village. Likewise, surveys of buildings and the renewable energy resources provide an estimate of the renewable generation possible in the local area. The work identifies a mix of renewable energy that has a high probability of generating during times of high demand. A structure for the community to create a local energy economy and negotiate with licensed energy suppliers is developed. The results are used to develop a generic framework that could be used by other communities.