Words by Smiley Team
A ground-breaking project has been launched to empower local people to decarbonise London’s transport network, and deliver social and environmental benefits, while earning a financial return.
Energy Garden is a community benefit society that invests in renewable energy infrastructure to support community development. Its mission is to empower communities and young people to take climate action into their own hands.
The initiative was founded by Agamemnon Otero MBE, and the first garden was installed at Brondesbury Park station in 2012. Energy Garden has 27 gardens across London’s railways and has worked with around 50 community groups in 2021 alone to implement resiliency in their local areas.
Now, it has launched a community share offer to raise £160,000 for a 231 kWp solar panel array on a transport depot in Streatham. The panels will generate millions of kilowatt hours of clean energy to help decarbonise the transport sector - the single largest source of UK emissions.
“Hundreds of thousands of commuters interact daily with energy gardens on the railway," said Agamemnon. "We are excited to take the next step with commuters and communities toward a zero-carbon rail with the Energy Garden Share Offer. A just transition is here and ours to co-create.”
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Revenue generated by the panels will fund Energy Garden’s delivery of schools’ education, youth training programmes and community gardens on the rail network, while providing investors with an expected 4% financial return.
Once installed, the panels are projected to save 884 tonnes of CO2 and generate 4,165,000 kilowatt hours of clean electricity over a 20-year period.
Approximately 42% of the electricity generated will be sold each year directly to Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) for onsite usage at the Streatham Depot, with the remaining energy exported.
For the exported energy, a Power Purchase Agreement has been signed with clothing company Patagonia and Younity (a joint venture between The Co-Op & Octopus Energy), which includes an additional social premium for energy purchased by Patagonia.
Altogether, this revenue is expected to generate over £100,000 to support the social and environmental outcomes that Energy Garden strives to deliver.
Investment is open to everyone aged 18 or over, with a minimum investment of £50.
To read the full share offer document and get involved, visit their website.
