Huhne gives green light to councils to sell electricity to National Grid
The Climate Change Secretary is to overturn the ban on local authorities selling renewable energy to the National Grid.
Chris Huhne told delegates at the Local Government Association conference in Bournemouth that it was “ridiculous” that the Local Government Act 1976 prevented councils from selling electricity from wind turbines or anaerobic digestion.
The 1976 Act (as amended by the Energy Act 1989) includes a provision preventing local authorities from selling electricity which is produced otherwise than in association with heat.
He said: “I want to see this repealed and by the end of the year I hope local authorities will be able to sell electricity from renewables – generating revenue to help local services and keep council tax down.”
Local authorities have generated more than 600,000 KWh from onsite wind or solar power, and 33,800,000 KWh from onsite biomass.
The minister’s announcement was welcomed by the LGA. Cllr Gary Porter, chairman of the association’s environment board, said: “This is a victory for councils who want to transform the way we provide cheap and green power for millions of people.
“Town halls across the country are desperate to install solar panels and other renewable energy measures on millions of homes, offices, leisure centres and other council buildings. It has the potential to revolutionise the way we produce electricity by turning town halls into green power stations.”
The government has also published a list containing the carbon footprint of each council in England. The emissions data for the 2008/9 showed that the highest emitters were Birmingham, Hertfordshire, Lancashire, Leeds and Hampshire. The lowest emitters were East Cambridgeshire, East Northamptonshire, Broadland, Isles of Scilly and West Somerset.
Local authorities were responsible for 8.3m tonnes of CO2, around 1.6% of the UK total for 2008.
Huhne said: “Wasting energy means that money that could be spent on local services is also being wasted. These new statistics should put energy wastage and energy efficiency at the forefront of the minds of councillors and council officials.”
