Peterborough City Council declared a climate emergency in 2019 and commissioned Energy Systems Catapult to develop a Local Area Energy Plan (LAEP) to deliver a comprehensive, data-driven, and cost-effective plan for decarbonisation of the whole energy system.

Funded as part of the Prospering from the Energy Revolution programme (2018-2023) through UK Research & Innovation, adopting a Local Area Energy Plan has positioned the Peterborough as a UK leader in the transition to Net Zero.

The LAEP – which covers 70% of all emissions generated in Peterborough – evaluates the current and future energy demands of the city, considering electricity demand, heating demand, retrofitting buildings for energy efficiency and electric vehicle charging demand to produce a plan to get to Net Zero carbon.

Peterborough was divided into ten zones based on areas served by primary electricity substations, rather than any political or geographical boundary. Dividing Peterborough into ten zones was necessary owing to the distinctions between urban/rural and commercial/residential areas that require different decarbonisation solutions.

The LAEP demonstrated that meeting a Net Zero target of 2040 would require investment of £8.8 billion into Peterborough. The forecast investment required is the total capital costs of the whole energy system (including domestic heating, insulation, networks etc.). Investment would most likely come from a combination of private investment, residential home upgrades, and government grants. The LAEP has afforded Peterborough City Council an opportunity to identify potential projects in need of financing. This project identification will inform the Council’s decisions on where to focus public and private investment to best meet their decarbonisation efforts.

The Council has kept the development of the LAEP open and transparent and has held a workshop with local stakeholders to discuss the report’s findings, the solutions to any barriers which may exist and to explore potential projects. The stakeholder group will lead the delivery of the LAEP through the development of viable business cases and unlocking investment.

Energy Systems Catapult has used the findings of the Peterborough LAEP, and others, to create its Guidance on Creating a Local Area Energy Plan, that is now becoming widely used to guide creation of LAEPs across the country.

Greater Manchester Combined Authority is working in collaboration with Energy Systems Catapult and their 10 local authorities to develop Local Area Energy Plans across the city.

The 10 LAEPs will explore the unique local characteristics of each borough, including the types of buildings, transport systems, local industry, local energy generation, storage and distribution assets to help better understand how energy could be generated, distributed and used in the future.

The insights will inform the creation of the Local Energy Market across Greater Manchester, helping to guide investment in measures like electric vehicle (EV) charging, energy storage capacity, decarbonisation of heating including introducing hydrogen where appropriate, home retrofit requirements for existing building stock and the development of local solar PV and hydropower generation.

Greater Manchester will also be the first place in the UK to utilise a new online public engagement and consultation process developed by Energy Systems Catapult, called zerocarbon.vote.

This will inform residents about the low carbon options that might be available in their neighbourhood based on the LAEPs and gather feedback and insight about their preferences.

The first Local Area Energy Plan is being delivered for Bury, with Salford and Manchester following. All 10 boroughs will follow by March 2022.

Cllr Andrew Western, GMCA Lead for the Green City-Region, said: “This marks a key step in this innovative project being pioneered here in Greater Manchester and one that will be a key element of our carbon-neutral ambitions by 2038.

“The local Area Energy Plans will help us optimise our energy consumption through localised systems in each of the 10 boroughs, making it more efficient and cost-effective for residents and businesses.  This is the first project of its kind to be delivered at this scale.

“This is the smart way forward and working together with our partners we can lay the groundwork for a low carbon future.”

More than 80% of local authorities in the UK have declared a climate emergency and targets of achieving Net Zero before 2050, yet few have a clear plan on how to get there, what needs to be done in what order, or which technologies and infrastructure to invest in.

Local Area Energy Planning (LAEP) is a data-driven, whole system approach – that considers how to decarbonise the entire energy system at least cost across electricity, gas, heat and transport, down the supply chains from energy generation to distribution and consumption in homes and businesses, and across systems – the physical, digital, market and policy systems.

Bridgend Country Borough Council were one of the first local places in the country to collaborate on a LAEP – focused initially on the decarbonisation of heat.

Working with BCBC, Wales and West Utilities and other key local stakeholders we developed a street-by-street LAEP unique to the area – that found decarbonisation of heat could be achieved at a cost premium of just 15% above the cost of decarbonising electricity alone.

The LAEP delivered future local energy scenarios; insights and evidence to help develop of a pipeline of innovation projects to transform the energy system to zero carbon over time; and identified opportunities and risks to help support more open dialogue, future engagement and investment in building retrofit, heat, gas and electricity networks.

Bridgend returned in 2021 to collaborate on extending the LAEP to include transport, energy storage and hydrogen.