The goal of a Community Solar Sharing Scheme is to collectively use the energy generated in the community with the community, giving each home access to cheaper, greener electricity.
Homes without solar panels would not traditionally benefit at all from the renewable energy generated by them, and the amount of benefit would vary between homes depending on roof sizes and the number of panels installed. We think this is unfair, and so we aim to address this with Community Solar Sharing Schemes.
These schemes are designed to fairly distributes the benefits of solar generated energy across all residents in the community, regardless of whether your home can have solar panels fitted or not. Homes with solar panels will be able to use 100% green electricity from the landlord at a discounted rate. The rate is discounted against Ofgems price cap rate, meaning the solar energy you buy via your landlord is cheaper compared to the electricity you buy from your supplier.
All homes will receive a community credit, the amount of credit you will receive is tied to the amount of energy you use from the grid (your energy supplier). Homes without solar installations will import more energy than if they had solar, and will therefore receive a larger credit. Homes with solar will receive a smaller credit because they are also benefitting from the discounted energy originating from the solar panels.
The discounted rate of the solar energy and the rate at which the credit is applied are balanced so all homes in the community achieve a similar level of overall saving.