WOCoRe had the opportunity on 7 October to speak with the team working on the Oxfordshire Local Area Energy Plan (OxLAEP). LAEP is a process for translating national clean energy targets into actionable plans at the local level.

Staff from the consultancy firm Arup, which is coordinating the work, and from six local authorities visited the hydro to learn about Osney Supercharge, one of the community projects funded by Local Energy Oxfordshire (LEO). Osney Supercharge tested the potential for local generation to help manage peaks in energy demand on Osney Island and contribute to balancing the electricity grid.

The tour started at the offices of Low Carbon Hub with a presentation by Barbara Hammond on what we learned from Osney Supercharge. We then visited the hydro and saw some of the businesses and homes on Osney Island which installed solar panels and batteries as part of the project.

Osney Supercharge was considered one of the most significant community projects carried out as part of Project LEO. SSEN, the network operator, conducted extensive mapping and monitoring of the local network on Osney. Data on local generation from the hydro and existing buildings with solar panels were gathered, and solar generation was installed on eight additional properties.

What SSEN learnt from the experience was that there is significant capacity to increase local generation and develop flexibility in the timing of residents drawing on the grid.

The transformer at the secondary substation on Osney can comfortably manage current demand. But as more residents switch to eVs and install heat pumps demand will rise and at some point the transformer will have to be upgraded. By working with the community, SSEN could manage upgrades to the local infrastructure in a more effective way.

The project showed that a community energy organisation like WOCoRe, because of its connection with local people, can mobilise residents to participate in an initiative to boost local generation and help introduce systems for managing peak demand.

Sarah Kerr, Energy Systems Lead at Oxfordshire County Council, said after the visit: ‘The content of your presentation and the follow-on discussion was spot on for the group.  Everyone was buzzing and really enthused.  It was so helpful in particular to link in the work that we’re doing on OxLAEP and how that supports the hyper-local work.’