Cornwall pioneers $24m local energy market for renewables
160 pilot participants will by connected to a mini-grid through smart technology

Energy services firm Centrica is building a “virtual energy marketplace” supported by smart technology in Cornwall, a UK county. In the three-year pilot, Centrica and its partners will build a local energy model that can generate, sell and store its own renewable power. Through the decentralised model, Centrica hopes to relieve pressure on the national grid, support renewable energy and save 160 local homes and businesses on energy bills.
Results & Impact
Centrica expects the three-year pilot will help Cornwall build up its renewables market and save locals on energy costs. The energy services firm aims to test flexible energy demand and the impact of a decentralised energy model, in which energy is generated and managed locally.
Key Parties
Centrica, Western Power Distribution, the University of Exeter, the National Grid, local renewable generators, the European Union’s Regional Development Fund, Cornwall Council
How
The 160 homes and businesses involved in the trial will receive free energy audits and smart technology upgrades, including battery units, micro-scale combined heat and power systems and energy storage units. The technology will connect the locals to the energy marketplace, and allow them to sell their excess energy into the grid and the wholesale energy market. Participants can choose to make buying and selling of energy automatic, making the process simple for locals. Western Power Distribution will support the development of a new energy services platform that promotes energy-flexible procurement. The University of Exeter will provide a research fellow to work on the pilot, and the National Grid is helping Centrica coordinate between existing energy-flexible arrangements and its new local energy market. The European Union’s Regional Development Fund contributed $16.5 million to the project.
Where
Cornwall, United Kingdom
Target Group
General population, entrepreneurs
Cost & Value
The three-year pilot will cost $24.2 million to build and maintain.
Stage
The pilot will begin in 2017.
The Story
Energy services firm Centrica is building a $24.2 million “virtual energy marketplace” in Cornwall, a UK county, to relieve pressure on the national grid and help consumers save on energy bills.
In the three-year trial, Centrica will build a mini-network that can generate, sell and store its own power. The independent power market will provide some 160 homes and businesses with clean energy and allow them to sell their excess into the grid. Centrica, which owns British Gas, has begun looking for participants for the pilot, which will launch later in 2017.
“By creating opportunities for homes and businesses to generate and store their own energy, and providing them with a simple route to market, we believe we can help both relieve pressure on the local grid and save – or potentially even make – local people money as a reward for being more flexible with how and when they use energy,” said Lisa Poole, the UK Director of Public Affairs and Policy at Centrica.
Centrica aims to test flexible energy demand and the impact of a decentralised energy model, in which energy is generated and managed locally. With local grids, Centrica hopes to reduce the burden on the national grid, support renewable energy and avoid expensive upgrades to the existing network.
“Cornwall has made huge strides in terms of their take-up of renewable generation, but that has brought challenges in terms of network capacity. This means that the network has a queue of renewable generation programs with high associated grid connection costs,” said Poole. The pilot will allow Cornwall to continue developing its local renewable energy market.
The 160 homes and businesses involved in the trial will receive free energy audits and smart technology upgrades (hence the term “virtual” marketplace), including battery units, micro-scale combined heat and power systems and energy storage units, which will cost an estimated $1 million. Once the upgrades are installed, the participants will be connected to a marketplace that allows them to sell their excess energy both to the grid and the wholesale energy market. The buying and selling can be done automatically, making the process simple for home and business owners.
“Once the installations have been completed, we anticipate that homeowners will be typically looking for us to automate the process as much as possible, while a business might need or want more control,” said Poole.
In addition to Cornwall Council, Centrica is working with Western Power Distribution, which will support the development of a new energy services platform that promotes energy-flexible procurement. The University of Exeter will provide a full-time research fellow to work on the pilot, and the National Grid is helping Centrica coordinate between existing energy-flexible arrangements and its new local energy market. The European Union’s Regional Development Fund contributed $16.5 million to the project. Centrica and British Gas will provide the remainder of the funding.
The pilot is the first of its kind in the UK. Centrica will open a Truro, Cornwall-based office and hire a team of 23 employees to help establish the energy marketplace. Centrica hopes the project will support economic growth in the region.
Five years ago, renewable energy accounted for less than a tenth of the United Kingdom’s power generation – now, it makes up a quarter of UK energy.
(Picture credit: Flickr/Chris Combe)
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