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A Scottish renewable energy expert urged local communities to make an investment in their future energy security this week, as he unveiled a new financing model for such schemes as hydro power and ground source heat pumps. Doug Prentice, a lecturer in renewable energy finance at Napier University and the chief executive of renewable energy firm GeoCapita, is currently in talks with the Scottish Government over financing model. He described the model as ‘public, private and community’ (PPC), and says it will prove more sustainable than the much-criticised private finance initiative (PFI) schemes favoured by the past few administrations.
The Scottish Government, which is probably ahead of anywhere else in the UK in this space, is very supportive of the PPC model,? he told The Scotsman newspaper. They’re putting together some very innovative finance mechanisms, one example of which is their renewable energy investment fund. The £103 million investment fund aims to support communities and rural businesses to develop local renewable energy projects, such as heat pumps, solar panels and hydro power.
