As part of the Smart Systems and Heat phase 2 programme, Newcastle City Council (NCC) has developed a Smart Energy Plan with support from Energy Systems Catapult, the Energy Technologies Institute and other stakeholders.

It builds on the strategic activities identified in the Local Area Energy Plan (LAEP), that was developed by the Smart Systems and Heat programme. The LAEP has provided insight into the potential pathways for securely and affordably achieving a targeted 95% reduction in emissions (from a 1990 baseline) from Newcastle City Council’s buildings by 2050.

Key points

This Smart Energy Plan, formally maps out and identifies the projects and activities that could be delivered by NCC to achieve its vision of a decarbonised, digitally connected smart county borough, including an aim to:

• Be a test bed for new energy system ideas and concepts; providing real-life case studies,
• Lead the decarbonisation agenda; by introducing new products and concepts to consumers,
• Attract new and existing energy and digitalisation businesses to trial ideas and grow within the county,
• Stimulate the local economy and develop employment opportunities through innovation and deployment of low carbon energy projects,
• Develop a joined-up approach to the energy transition engaging local academia, communities and businesses.

Newcastle City Council has already hosted the delivery of some innovative energy projects:

• Living Lab: Energy Systems Catapult has installed the Home Energy Services Gateway technology into 55 residential properties across Newcastle to monitor energy usage within the home and conduct trials of innovative energy service offerings, within a real-world environment.
• Granular monitoring of multiple social housing properties utilising the Building Energy System Modelling asset and Home Energy Dynamics modelling tool.