LAEPs must link up to cut cost of grid upgrades

Joining up local area energy plans (LAEPs) across the country would help lower the cost of upgrading the electricity system.

This is the view of Electricity North West (ENW), which is supporting Utility Week’s Make it a LAEP Year campaign for the next government to mandate and fund the creation of plans for all councils in England.

Victoria Turnham, ENW’s head of network innovation, told Utility Week that having LEAPs in place for every local authority in the north west would “help us to develop really cost efficient and timely investments” for the whole region.

Currently one in six councils have a LAEP, which sets out bespoke pathways to meet their individual decarbonisation targets. However, with budgets and resources stretched and increasing pressure on statutory services, many other local authorities say they cannot prioritise this approach.

This is why the Make it a LEAP Year campaign is calling for the plans to be a statutory requirement and for government to fund the estimated £40 million initial cost to roll them out across England. The Welsh government has already agreed to fund LAEPs for all its local authorities.

Turnham said: “There’s no doubt a LAEP is a proven and powerful tool to allow local authorities to shape and guide their energy futures. It creates a pathway for the transition that can be turned into actionable plans. It allows local authorities, supported by key stakeholders such as DNOs, to address the specific needs of the local area, which in our opinion results in a much more inclusive and just transition. It means those with the best local knowledge can help effectively develop the future pathway for decarbonizing a particular area.”

While the north west is home to a number of LAEPs, including those co-ordinated by Greater Manchester Combined Authority, Turnham insisted that a joined-up approach is essential.

“Our electricity network crosses many local authorities boundaries, so there are lots of pieces of the jigsaw that the LAEPs effectively bring together. Having them all aligned would really help us to develop really cost efficient and timely investments that benefit the whole of the north west.”

Turnham said ENW regularly engages with councils across its patch, regardless of whether they have a LAEP, but stressed that a detailed plan allows those discussions to go to the next level. She gave the example of the network becoming a partner in Oldham Council’s green new deal, which aims to unlock £5 billion of investment in low-carbon infrastructure by 2030.

The network has also set up a data and information exchange framework that can bring together its data and the LAEPs for each area to feed into its planning process.

Lancaster City Council is another of the authorities in ENW’s patch that has developed a LAEP.

Elliott Grimshaw, the council’s service lead – energy and sustainability said the DNO’s support had been “invaluable”, adding: “This partnership demonstrates a shared commitment to a greener, more sustainable future for Lancaster, and we’re excited to see the positive impact it will have on our local area.”

The Make it a LAEP Year campaign aims to showcase the benefits of LAEPs and the support of the energy sector for them to be mandated and funded.

Kate Gilmartin, chief executive at the British Hydropower Association, has also added her backing to the campaign, saying: “Local Area Energy Plans are a key initiative that will bring together stakeholders managing a number of sectors and vectors in a coordinated way. This process will show where communities will need to be engaged and how without well thought out strategic engagement, the top down will never mesh with the enabling works that have to happen at the community level.”

Find out more about the campaign here and contact Utility Week editor James Wallin to show your support.