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Implementation of Projects

Small scale: Planning

When thinking about any renewable energy development it is worth contacting your Local Planning Authority and finding out whether you need to apply for planning permission (Visit www.planning-applications.co.uk for advice).

You can make certain types of minor changes without needing to apply for planning permission. These are called "permitted development rights".

The Planning Portal is the UK Government's online planning and building regulations resource for England and Wales.

The Planning Portal's general advice is that you should contact your local planning authority and discuss your proposal before any work begins. They will be able to inform you of any reason why the development may not be permitted and if you need to apply for planning permission for all or part of the work.

The Planning Policy Statement 22 (PPS22) Renewable Energy sets out the Government's planning policies for renewable energy, which planning authorities should have regard to when preparing local development documents and when taking planning decisions.

Financing

Grants are in place to help with funding a renewable energy project.

The amount of grant available for microgeneration projects is shown in the table below.

Technology / Maximum Amount of Grant
Technology Maximum Amount of Grant
Solar photovoltaics Maximum of £2,000 per kW of installed capacity, subject to an overall maximum of £2,500 or 50% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is the lower
Wind turbines Maximum of £1,000 per kW of installed capacity, subject to an overall maximum of £2,500 or 30% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is the lower
Small hydro Maximum of £1,000 per kW of installed capacity, subject to an overall maximum of £2,500 or 30% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is the lower
Solar thermal hot water Overall maximum of £400 or 30% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is the lower
Ground source heat pumps Overall maximum of £1,200 or 30% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is the lower
Automated wood pellet fed room heaters/stoves Overall maximum of £600 or 20% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is the lower
Wood fuelled boiler systems Overall maximum of £1,500 or 30% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is the lower

There will be a £2,500 grant cap per household. Householders can still apply for more than one technology but the funding would be limited up to a maximum of £2,500 per household depending on technologies involved.

To find out more about the programme, the technologies that are funded and how to apply visit http://www.lowcarbonbuildings.org.uk/how/householders

The Energy Saving Trust (www.energysavingtrust.org.uk) also contains useful information on grants available in local areas for renewable projects at a household scale.

You can also Download the Powerpoint presentation of “How to obtain Planning Permission” By David Edmondson from Carrick District Council.

Commercial Scale: Land agreement

An agreement needs to be made with the land owner(s) and other users as to plans for renewable energy technologies. All terms and conditions need to be discussed and documented prior to further development.

Resource assessment/fuel contracts

The supply of the natural resource that will be used needs to be assessed. For example wind speed throughout the year; water flow and height it is falling; amount and intensity of sunlight in an area; using a wave buoy to measure height/frequency of waves; supply chain of biomass/biofuel; etc.

Planning:

For a commercial scale renewable energy project an EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment) may be needed.

Financing:

For businesses and SME’s (Small and Medium Enterprises) visit http://www.lowcarbonbuildings.org.uk/how/stream2/ for information on the Low Carbon Buildings Programme.