Public Funding for Centre For Energy Equality Ltd

**Challenge:** 45% of Nigerians have no access to electricity, while even areas with access face dismal levels of reliability. Frequent blackouts stifle industry, disproportionately impact poorer groups and women business owners and harm the economy. The use of fossil-fuel-powered generators to bridge the deficit in supply is costly and detrimental to air quality and CO2 emissions. Recent volatility in fuel prices further complicates planning and budgeting for energy needs. CEE has partnered with PAM Africa in Nigeria to develop and trial a **Solar Battery Hub (SBH)** technology that will provide solar-charged battery-swapping for Urban communities in Nigeria. The SBH project will support clean energy development and provide improved energy access for households, businesses, and social institutions in sub-Saharan Africa. Our current focus is on Nigeria. However, we are clear that this is a technology that can also have a wider impact through licensing and partnerships across other Sub-Saharan countries and in other territories. **Innovation:** The solar battery hub offers an innovative solution to promote clean energy development in underserved communities. The project will reduce reliance on fossil fuels and increase access to a flexible and reliable energy source. This project will support a move to a sustainable commercial solution by trialling the technology in a peri-urban environment, developing a new robust battery for the battery-swapping market, and developing software to make them accessible and affordable. **Benefits:** The solar battery hub offers highly flexible access to reliable, affordable clean energy that can be accessed instantly. Compared with fixed, wired microgrids, the SBH offers a range of benefits: * Rapidly deployable with a small system being deployed within weeks as opposed to years for a connected system. * Avoids the cost of cabling and complex system integration. * Can be an interim measure used ahead of grid or larger-scale microgrid developments. * Scalable, de-risking large-scale investments. * Semi-mobile so can be redeployed if it becomes obsolete. * Flexible commercial options for both operators and customers.

Let Zero is a project designed to help UK local authorities tackle the issue of poor housing conditions in the Private Rented Sector (PRS), including damp and mould and high carbon emissions. The project will develop an AI-enabled end-to-end solution incorporating an easily-accessible 'One-stop Shop' to support private landlords (especially in fuel-poor areas) in upgrading their properties. Powered by an 'optioneering tool' and integrated local supply chains for retrofit, landlords will have a 'trusted path' tailored to the needs of the property and its occupants. It will provide landlords with: * A trusted support service * A clear pathway to action based on quantified retrofit options * Support accessing grants and finance This will be achieved through the integration of a suite of innovative solutions brought by project partners: * Rapid analysis and characterisation of specific building requirements. * Better cost and energy saving estimations enabled by AI and building geometry data. * Response to design concerns such as space standards for tenants and accessibility using AI. * Innovative retrofit solutions deliverable via local supply chains, tailored to local needs. * Retrofit grant aggregator and new green finance solutions. The project will develop a proof-of-concept PRS One-stop Shop by: * Assessing the needs of landlords and tenants. * Initiating a 200 home renovation programme in South Yorkshire to generate data and learning on retrofit approaches, costs, challenges and performance. * Categorising homes according to building type. Survey and generate 3D models for selected properties. * Developing an AI tool that uses learning from properties in use, solution costs and needs of landlords and tenants to identify and design optimum solutions for retrofit. * Delivering innovation within supply chains, including creating innovative products and developing local installation capability. * Integrating grant funding and finance advice. The One-stop Shop will initially be deployed in South Yorkshire (not-for-profit business model) but designed to be replicated across the UK, tailored to specific needs and local housing types. It will drive growth, innovation and revenue in local supply chains. The 18-month project will be led by South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority, supported by a consortium with expertise in needs of landlords and tenants, provision of advice and guidance, data collation and analysis, optioneering, AI-generated retrofit design, together with manufacturers and installers from retrofit supply chains. This replicable and scalable solution will create commercial opportunities for solution providers as well as benefits to landlords and tenants across the UK, especially in fuel-poor areas, to facilitate a just transition to net-zero.

**Summary**: Net Zero Terrace Streets (NZTS) will produce a place based, whole systems, replicable and scalable model for decarbonisation of mixed-tenure terraced housing. It will support energy transition for left behind communities, reduce bills by over 80%, develop a solution for the hardest to decarbonise homes and provide a model for even the smallest local authorities to adopt to support delivery of net-zero targets. **Problem**: There are 10 million terraced homes in the UK. Many are not suitable for Air Source heat pumps due to space and noise constraints. The community we are focused on is not currently appropriate for heat zoning or centralised solutions and is dependent upon electric boilers, which are expensive to run and cumulatively, place a large load on the grid. This and similar communities rely on unplanned, unphased, and individualistic transition. However, individual homes will not deploy at the speed we need to decarbonise. Failure for uptake in ASHPs and retrofit to date (only approx. 7000 ASHPs in the first year of Boiler Upgrade Scheme), demonstrates that we have yet to find solutions that survive contact with individual householders. **Solution**: NZTS is a Smart Local Energy Solution (SLES) comprising a cluster approach to shared, ambient loop ground source heat pumps (GSHPs), community owned storage, solar photovoltaic (PV) EV car club and charging and local peer-to-peer Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs). NZTS will create a non-grant dependent alternative that can allow communities to access affordable, low carbon energy and healthy warm homes, at no upfront cost, reducing bills by over 80%. **Engagement**: Without community acceptance and uptake, critical mass cannot be attained. The approach is led by the community, for the community through a collaborative and co-production process. Community representatives (both elected members and other local leaders) will co-create a whole community approach that embeds change. **Impact**: The model is designed to allow smaller local authorities to participate, overcoming challenges on resource and finance whilst bringing inclusive growth, community wealth building, new jobs, skills and training, improved housing, and the correlated health benefits. It is a phenomenal opportunity for local communities and local authorities. Central to this ethical model is a non-extractive premise that enables a fair transition, both now and into the future as the benefits of smart meters, flexibility and SLES advance.

Decarbonising urban areas is a complex problem, especially considering the electrification of heat and transport and its impact on the electricity network. The current strategy is around macro (heat networks centred around large loads and peripheral areas) and micro (individual homes) solutions e.g. air source heat pumps (ASHPs). Many communities, especially terraced streets, will not be appropriate for either solution. ASHPs are not feasible due to space constraints, noise implications, efficiency losses, maintenance issues and risk of damage in a confined area such as a small back yard. Macro solutions including 4th generation heat networks proves challenging due to space constraints in locating energy centres and the scale of delivery needed to be commercially viable. Off street parking is not an option for many and affordability of cars is lower than average, yet public transport constraints exacerbate the issues of mobility. This innovative solution overcomes multiple barriers to the rapid deployment of low carbon, affordable heat at community scale. It will produce a replicable delivery model for decarbonisation of terraced housing that can be scaled and is appropriate for those that might otherwise be left behind. The solution identified is a Smart Local Energy System (SLES) which will comprise ambient loop ground source heat pumps (GSHPs), community EV car clubs, community provided storage and solar PV and local peer-to-peer Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) controlled by optimisation software. The benefits case of the system can simply be summarised that it would reduce bills and peak network capacity by up to 70% compared to the counterfactual of direct electric heating in individual homes. This system relies however on novel arrangements between a variety of stakeholders including the local authority, community energy organisations, resident groups, supply chain, energy suppliers, aggregators and the local distribution network operator. It's value objectives include: \*Overcoming barriers to entry for consumers who could not otherwise afford to decarbonise \*Protecting consumers from fuel poverty through reduced bills \*Accelerating decarbonisation through enabling participation and uptake \*Being a replicable model that is scalable and deployable GB-wide This feasibility sets out to create solutions to the non-technical barriers to deployment including: \*Commercial and investable business model bringing multiple parties and ownership models together \*Engagement and buy in from multiple parties including consumers \*Governance including public procurement mechanisms and fair distribution of benefits \*Policy and regulatory barriers \*Supply chain barriers including multiple skill types and technology solutions being offered in a cohesive manner

There is a major challenge in making electricity accessible in off-grid communities in Nigeria as well as other parts of the world with limited energy access. While connected microgrid solutions have great potential, there is a real need for flexible and rapidly deployable solutions that can enable productive and transient electricity users to access affordable electricity. The Solar Battery Hub brings a brand-new dimension to microgrid technologies for off-grid communities. By offering an entirely flexible solution to energy use with a new commercial model, the solution improves on and adds to more traditional, connected microgrid solutions. By focusing on productive users of energy, markets will be stimulated, accelerating the growth of clean energy and associated opportunities in rural parts of Nigeria. The Solar Battery Hub will consist of a small solar array, connected to batteries of various sizes and capacities. This will enable productive energy users such as schools, medical centres, and markets stall operators to rent the batteries and take only the energy they need when they need it. This will reduce the overall cost burden of investing in fully connected micro-grid systems, which are often unaffordable or take a long time to get up and running. During the project, we shall develop and refine a design for the solution based on extensive market research, including direct engagement with rural communities in Nigeria. We shall then test and demonstrate the solution on a small scale to seek feedback and inform future developments. As well as helping to contribute to improved energy access and the prosperity that this brings, the Solar Battery Hub will address a range of wider challenges, including: * Food Waste; enabling cooling for market stalls will help reduce the 45% of food currently wasted due to perishing in high temperatures. * Health: the solution will enable primary healthcare centres to be powered, enabling drugs and vaccines to be stored for longer (by refrigerating) and lighting for night-time operations. * Skills: by powering schools and education centres, the solution will help develop skills for young people in rural communities. * Income: having temporary power solutions will enable small businesses and stalls to prosper, increasing economic activities. * Equity: bringing power to rural areas will help narrow the gap between rural and city communities. Also 80% of market stall operators are women, enabling greater opportunity for gender equality.

Home energy improvements could save £770 million a year from household energy bills by 2030 and save £500 million a year for the NHS (LGA,2022). But, identifying and then supporting the people in most in need of home energy improvements and energy efficiency measures is challenging, time consuming, and often ineffective for local authorities, social housing providers utility companies and other organisations involved with decarbonising housing. Our solution is the Fairer Warmth App that will provide a dynamic, digital interface between households and organisations (such as local authorities) who are wishing to support communities and gain insights into where strategic investments should be made. It will be used by households to access simple energy efficiency advice that can make their homes more comfortable and economic to run, quickly assess eligibility for grants, and target retrofit and home energy efficiency measures. It will be used by organisations such as local authorities, social housing providers and utility companies to more efficiently allocate loans and grants for household retrofit and to understand housing stock retrofit requirements in detail and at scale - supporting the development of Local Area Energy Plans (LAEPs) The Fairer Warmth App will deliver a range of societal impacts that include: * Enable those households struggling with bills to make their homes more energy efficient and enable organisations to allocate funds to those most in need. * Help pull many households out of fuel poverty -- contributing towards saving £500 million a year for the NHS (LGA,2022), and engage people in the decarbonisation agenda. * Reducing public sector spending on community outreach associated with finding the people in most need of retrofit. * Speed up the pace of retrofit and energy efficiency measures. * A significant impact on Net Zero, reducing overall energy use -- saving both gas and electricity. * Help people keep their homes warms, reducing the associated health impacts. In summary, if adopted widely, the Fairer Warmth App could have a transformational impact and be a key facilitator for net zero and self-driven health improvements throughout the UK.