Community Solar Programme

BHESCo want to partner with communities in Sussexto develop locally-owned rooftop solar power

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BHESCo want to help neighbourhoods across Sussex develop their own community solar power systems. 

Our goal is to install rooftop solar panels on as many homes as possible and to establish the BHESCo Community Solar Programme as a scalable model for communities across the UK.

Solar panels will be owned by BHESCo, and residents will purchase the electricity from the panels at a significantly discounted rate compared to what they are paying to their energy company.

In this way, residents do not have to pay anything upfront and will see an immediate reduction in their monthly electricity costs and household carbon emissions.

The cost of solar panels has increased in recent years, becoming unaffordable for many homeowners. By purchasing solar panels in bulk (for forty or fifty properties) BHESCo can secure a discount on behalf of homeowners.

Through economies of scale, the more households that participate in the programme, the cheaper the solar electricity unit price becomes. 

Benefits to residents

  • You pay nothing upfront – BHESCo finances the installation of solar panels on your behalf
  • BHESCo will monitor the ongoing performance of the solar panels and address any maintenance issues
  • BHESCo ensures that the cost of purchasing electricity from the solar panels is lower than what you are paying to your energy supplier

How will the community solar programme work?

BHESCo will raise the funding to build a community owned solar power system that it would operate and maintain on behalf of the residents, optimising the financial benefit by combining the output of all the systems on the street.

Residents will also have the option to pay up-front for their solar panels, this will mean that BHESCo will not be responsible for the maintenance of their panels. 

Participating residents would enter into a contract called a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), agreeing to purchase solar electricity from the solar panels installed by BHESCo at a discounted price in comparison to the price they pay to their energy supplier. This is only possible where the solar panels have been funded by BHESCo, who retain ownership of the equipment .

After an agreed length of time, typically 25 years, the household can either keep the panels or BHESCo will remove them. Solar panels can last up to 35 years.

Because the solar panels are financed by repayments, the discounted price is directly impacted by the agreement term, so a longer term ensures a lower price.

Participants will need a smart meter and allow BHESCo access to the data it provides. This is so that BHESCo can see the volume of electricity that has been generated by the solar panels, how much has been used by households, and how much, if any, has been exported to the electricity grid.

Households will be buying a large portion of their electricity at a lower rate thanks to the power being generated by the solar panels. BHESCo will bill individual participants according to the terms of their Power Purchase Agreement directly for the electricity they use from the solar panels. The aim is to offer everyone the same price per unit of electricity used.

What is a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA?)

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):

BHESCo is a social enterprise co-operative that develops energy efficiency and clean energy projects for communities and businesses.

When entering into a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), the homeowner grants BHESCo the right to install the solar panels on their roof and to use the airspace above the roof; there is no lease of the roof. The terms of sale of the electricity generated by BHESCo to the resident are included in the agreement. The agreement will be for the life of the programme, which is up to 25 years.

The agreement will include terms for the maintenance of the solar array, the insurance of the system, fault detection and remedial procedures.

Electricity generated by the solar panels which is not consumed by the residents will be exported to the grid. BHESCo will enter into an agreement with its energy supplier partner, Younity to optimise the payment they receive for the exported electricity.  

BHESCo will transfer the agreement to the buyer under the same beneficial conditions or buy the panels from BHESCo outright. The solar panels generate free electricity over their lifetime, creating significant value on the property. The buyer will not need to maintain or operate this system, contributing to the property’s attractiveness.

If you live in a rental property, please pass details of the Community Solar Programme to your landlord. Alternatively, please provide your landlord’s contact details to BHESCo and we can contact them directly.

The minimum amount of houses that are required to take part to make this project viable is 25.  

The higher the participation, the lower the installation cost and the lower the collective cost of the electricity.

Please check with your home insurance company to ensure that our solar panel insurance doesn’t impact your annual premium.

BHESCo would be responsible for removing any panels that obstruct roof repairs. The property owner would then arrange and pay for any necessary repairs, notifying BHESCo once completed. BHESCo would then return and reinstall the removed panels.

Prior to the installation of any panels, BHESCo would provide a structural survey of the roof to ensure it is in a suitable condition. This provides residents with useful information that can help prevent/ mitigate future repairs.

The installation of the solar panels will be undertaken by one of BHESCo’s trusted partners, who are insured for any damage caused during the installation. The PPA agreement contains all the insurance terms associated with BHESCo’s performance guarantee for your system.

The information is stored in OMEGA, a cloud-based platform built by Smart Power Network (SMPnet Ltd). They have also developed cybersecurity platforms, so their systems keep data secure.

The advantages to participating in a Community Solar Power Programme are:
1. You pay nothing upfront
2. You can become an investor in BHESCo who will raise the funding for the project, providing you with shared ownership of the project
3. BHESCo oversees the performance of your system, removing the hassle of managing your energy generation system
4. BHESCo can optimise the income from export to the national grid to ensure that you pay the lowest possible cost for your electricity,
5. You participate in an innovative local community programme

Solar panels are considered permitted development by the planning authority. Under the permitted development criteria solar panels can be installed on a front roof slope in a conservation area. Furthermore, the solar panels can project up to 200mm from the slope of the roof under permitted development. Rules around permitted development can be accessed on the Council’s planning website.

In order for the installation to be worthwhile and effective, roofs must be able to hold 6 panels minimum. 

Pitched roofs are more suitable for solar PV than flat roofs. In the past it has been difficult to insure Solar PV on flat roofs as the frames which are required to hold the panels are more susceptible to wind damage, and due to increasing instances of extreme weather, insurance companies are becoming more cautious about insuring such cases. 

Solar PV is unsuitable to install on roofs that are North facing.

Roofs must have little to no obstacles, such as Velux windows or dormer extensions.

The roof must have minimal shading. 

BHESCo will aggregate the export of all electricity generated from the systems to optimise the price paid by its partner energy supplier – Younity.