Transition Falmouth & Penryn

1. Transition Falmouth & Penryn Gage Williams OBE MACantab MIET Renewable Energy Office for Cornwall (REOC) gagewillms@aol.com, 01208 841378

2. DECC Amendments • Energy Act – 2 amendments to introduce: a. £400/MWh feed-in tariff for electricity from microgeneration (50kW or less) b. Renewable Heat Incentive of £20/MWh • If accepted, will increase demand for microgeneration: • 50 kW wind-turbine revenue will jump from £24,000 to £80,000 pa • Water mill jumps from £7,200 to £24,000 • Biomass CHP & Ground Source Heat Pumps will be paid for heat

3. Fal/Pen tonnes of oil equivalent p.a. • Based on 12.4 tons CO2 per person: one tonne of heating oil when burnt emits 3.16 tons CO2 • Population of Fal/Penryn is ~30,000 Sources REOC 2002 , Bioregional: creating low carbon communities

4. Ground Source Heat Pumps (GSHP) • Cornwall leads the GSHP field • Ideal for new houses or as replacement boiler for 20% of old houses • Fal/Pen has 13,200 houses; 2,640 to have GSHP • Typical cost £7,500 less £2,500 grant • Net cost of £1,500 more than new oil boiler • Put in 4 MWh of electricity; get back 16 MWh heat • Get annual refund of £320 with Renewable Heat Incentive if it is £20/MWh

5. Domestic Ground Source Heat Pump Kensa’s new heat pump design A Slinky

6. GSHPs • Can be horizontal if space is available or vertical or sunk in a lake • Most effective if pump’s electricity is renewable – 4:1 energy gain

7. Domestic Energy • Average Cornish house uses 4 MWh electricity & 16 MWh for heating/hot water • With GSHP this becomes 8 MWh electricity plus £320 annual RHI refund sufficient to buy 3 MWh of electricity at ~10p/kWh • Leaves 5 MWh electricity to find RE supply if the 2,640 houses with GSHPs are to go 100% green energy

8. Micro Wind-Turbines • Not more than 50kW as earns £400/MWh compared to larger turbines’ ~£120/MWh • Carland turbines are 400kW • 50kW far smaller –height of blade tip is 34m (110ft) only. New large turbines 440ft. • Need to be >100m apart, best to cluster as cuts planning & hook-up and other costs • Fal/Pen could lease a windy site perhaps in the Clay Area or use your own site rent free! • But output = cube of the average wind speed • 6 m/sec = 216; 8 m/sec = 512; 137% more

9. PGE 20/50 Wind-Turbine Ave wind 7m/sec 240 MWh pa earns £96k at £400/MWh feed-in-tariff Clay Area 8m/sec 280 MWh pa £112k pa

10. Micro Wind and GSHP • The 2,640 GSHP houses needed 5 MWh renewable electricity to go 100% green • 5 MWh would cost ~£500 at 10p/kWh (av domestic rate) • Each micro turbine earns £96k gross, £75k net • Each turbine can provide the income required to buy 5 MWh for 150 houses with GSHPs • 18 wind-turbines & 2,640 GSHPs would convert 46,560 MWh to green energy saving 4,084 toe • Communal turbines get 50% capital grant reducing cost from £200k to ~£120k • Cost of a 150th share is £800; GSHP cost is £1,500 after grant and oil boiler replacement is deducted • 2,640 households would need to find £2,300 to save £2,000 pa they would have paid for 20 MWh • 87% annual return!

11. For the 80% without a GSHP • For free domestic energy they need an income of £2,000 pa (10p/kWh) • The net £75k earned by a wind turbine could achieve this for 37 houses • Each house to buy 37th share in a turbine costing £3,380 to earn £2,000 pa; 59% return pa • Would need 285 wind-turbines; total 303 • Would require ~88 ha (220 acres) • Would generate 68,400 MWh green electricity saving 6,000 toe • Total 10,084 toe saved; 8.5% of Fal/Pen’s 118,500

12. How they might cluster The diagram shows area needed for cluster of 303 turbines (220 acres) 100m apart needs 88 acres; av wind speed 8.1m/sec

13. The Multiplier Effect ElectricityHeat/HotWtrCost 4 MWh 16 MWh = £2,000 8 MWh £320 RHI refund = £480 8 MWh £320 refund + £500 div = £20 profit Today £1,500 after grants etc GSHP 1 windshare 150 shares at £800 £75k net Notes: Assumes domestic tariff is 10p/kWh; GSHP is installed in new build or replaces oil fired boiler; and 50kW wind turbine achieves 240 MWh for net £75k. £2,300 invested earns gross £2,020 per year if FIT is 40p/kWh & RHI is 2p/kWh

14. Micro-Hydro Schemes • Fal/Pen has rich potential • Argal Res 17m higher than College Res – could take 50kW micro-hydro • College Res to sea 64m another 50kW • Helland Mill at head of Argal 15kW • Total 115kW at 80% generates 806 MWh worth £320k pa saving 73 toe

15. Rural Solution – Micro Hydro Can either use pipe to Francis Turbine or leat to water wheel River Dart 48kW uses weir, improves fishing & flood protection

17. Tidal Schemes • 2 sq km estuary between Penryn & Trefusis Point • 3 metre average tide; 60 million tonnes of seawater every six hours • 20 tethered jetties + 50 kW Gorlov Vertical Turbines at 15% efficiency could generate 1,314 MWh earning £525,600 pa saving 116 toe • Jetties could create new moorings

19. Farm Biomass CHP • Small biomass CHP plants designed to match the 50kW microgenerator limit • Need 840 tonnes woodland & sawmill waste, miscanthus (16-20t/ha), waste wood • Each generates 400 MWh electricity, 1,180 MWh thermal & 84 tonnes bio-coal • Would collocate with schools, supermarkets, business parks, marinas, swim pool • If 11 had a plant, would generate 4,400 MWhe, 12,980 MWh thermal & 924 tonnes bio-coal • If half the heat is sold for £15/MWh and the bio-coal for £300/t would earn £2,390,000 pa saving2,005 toe pa (post chipping, haulage, harvesting) • Total saved to date is 12,229 toe (10.3%)

20. Farm Sized Biomass CHP Organics Biomass Energy CHP plant: Fuel: 840 tonnes woody mix incl miscanthus/SRC willow Capex ~£400k, Rural Dev Prog grant £140k O&M annual costs ~£65k Sale of CHP & Char ~£200k Net return of £135k on £260k investment

21. Counting the Cost Assuming an Operating & Maint cost of 20% pa, net income is £26,000,000 & crude payback is 22 months Installation takes five years

22. The Unknowns • Will the Feed-in-Tariff be £400/MWh? It may reduce by 1% each year • Will the RHI be £20/MWh? How will the heat be measured; must it be used? • Will a cluster of 50kW wind-turbines no longer qualify as microgeneration? • Planning constraints and hurdles – watch the new Planning Act • Will parishioners support transition?

23. The Benefits • Puts about £26,000,000 into Fal/Pen each year (~£2,000 per home) • Creates reserve fund of £29m • Cuts heating costs & offers chance to buy shares with dividends • Eradicates/tackles rural & fuel poverty • Achieves degree of energy security • Saves ~38,640 tonnes CO2 per year

24. Raise £20,000,000 equity preferentially from Fal/Pen over 5 years Works out at ~£1,500 per household 3,670 houses put money up in first year for £5.5m Includes £1,500 for Ground Source Heat Pump Shareholders agree to 50% of dividends for first 5 years to be put back into Fal/Pen Ltd Assumes 50% revenue for first year as wind & GSHPs generate as soon as they are installed How do you raise £48 million?

25. Self Funding for £48 million? No loan required based on £20 million equity, excellent rate of return Reserve of £29 million carried forward for repairs/replacements This is just one example; many ways of doing this

26. Conclusions • Each area will need a different RE mix • Feed-in-Tariff & RHI will lead to robust business plans for shareholders without going to banks • Priority for Fal/Pen burghers to buy equity, if not sold – offered outside • Biomass CHP will get double benefit • Feed-in-Tariff and Renewable Heat incentive offer great opportunity for Cornwall • Would save 12,229 toe; 10.3% of Fal/Pen’s total saving 30,000 people £8,900,000 if oil returns to $147/barrel