Peterborough council rated as top city authority in the country for solar energy production

The research by Eco brand The Solar Centre was looking at council investment in solar energy, solar production and usage and the number of council-owned properties fitted with solar panels

Peterborough was shown to have produced the most solar energy in the UK since 2015 – 146,000,000 kWh per 100,000 capita.

In comparison 22 city councils have not invested in solar since 2015.

Speaking in October 2020, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he wants the UK to become the “world leader in clean wind energy.”

The PM believes this is vital to achieving net zero emissions by 2050.

The pandemic has taken a toll on the economy, but it is seen as imperative that councils fight the effects of global warming. Along with investment in wind energy, councils are expected to take the lead in continuing to work on other areas if Britain are to achieve net zero by 2050.

By far the most energy produced for council use was in Peterborough, according to the data gathered from councils.

They have generated over 295 million kilowatt hours (kWh). This was adjusted to per 100,000 capita – meaning Peterborough produced 146,000,000 kWh per capita.

The city of Peterborough look set to build on their renewable energy production, following the recent plans to build solar panels on Peterborough Magistrates Court that were submitted by the Ministry of Justice.

According to the information from Peterborough City Council, there has been no investment since 2015 into solar energy specifically, but the systems already in place – on 64 council-owned-properties – are producing vast amounts of energy each year.

Privately there are plans for a new solar and battery farm in Stanground which have been recommended for approval by Peterborough City Council’s planning team.

This is despite the authority receiving multiple objections for the proposed development off Buntings Lane, including from residents who believe it would be hugely detrimental to local wildlife and to their own house prices.

Cambridgeshire County Council is seeking permission to build a 2.93 MW solar farm and battery energy storage system at an old landfill site that was formally closed in 1992.

The county council owns the land between the A1139 Fletton Parkway, Stanham Way and the A605 and has said the project would supply the National Grid and be of no cost to Peterborough City Council or its residents.

RELATED: Controversial new Peterborough solar farm recommended for approval

Other factors that were looked at in the survey of council involvement in solar projects were the number of council owned properties fitted with PV systems and investment in solar energy by council since 2014/15. Cities were ranked on investment in solar energy, per million pound of housing and environment budget, due to varying budget sizes.

Newcastle has the most solar fitted buildings, with 1,032, while the best investors were London Borough of Merton – pumping just over £1.4m into solar energy over the past five-and-a-half years. Proportionate to budget, this was more than £130,000 per million. Overall, the city that invested the most in this time was Portsmouth – with £4,995,707 spent.

Brian Davenport, Director of The Solar Centre, commented: “All of us at The Solar Centre care greatly about the UK’s target of having net zero emissions by 2050, and we’re always interested to see council activity that helps towards reaching this goal.

“Of course, there are many areas councils need to invest in besides solar.”