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The new initiative, Community Energy Catalyst, will support local communities to build their own clean energy infrastructure or secure stakes in larger regional renewable energy schemes. Fair Play Clean Energy, Thrive’s existing joint venture with Top Cashback Sustainability Ltd, will provide £20 million of the investment, with Better Society Capital providing matched funding.
Community Energy Catalyst will make investments ranging between £0.5 million to £30 million in individual projects which are at least 1MW in size and employ proven technologies such as onshore and offshore wind, solar PV and hydro-electric. The joint venture will target late-stage development projects that have already secured planning consent, enabling them to advance through to construction, commissioning and operation while aligning with local objectives.
As well as funding, Thrive brings 30 years of experience financing, building and operating clean energy projects in the UK, and will provide support to community energy groups during key milestones such as procurement and grid connection.
When we created our award-winning community funding bridge in 2017, it was the first of its kind. Eight years later we’ve invested over £21 million into seven community energy projects, including £4 million to build England’s largest onshore wind turbine, which is 100% owned by the community in our home city of Bristol.

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ACE_June_2024-6

Funding partnership with Better Society Capital will help more communities to own their own projects or take a stake in a larger project in their local area.

We’re partnering with the UK’s leading social impact investor to mobilise £40 million for community-owned energy projects

Featured

Thrive is pleased to support Babbasa in their important work by providing a £1,000 grant that will help them to continue offering their Support Programme. One of their core services, the Support Programme works with young people who are at risk or have dropped out of education or employment, who may be facing multiple barriers or challenges, or who are disadvantaged by their background (e.g. Black and minority ethnic, disability, in care or care leavers).The programme supports young people to overcome the challenges they are facing in education or employment by providing intensive 1:1 support, targeted group activities, and aspirational or career-focused activities. It also helps young people to identify their aspirations and personal challenges, understand their rights and choices and develop the skills and confidence to pursue their ambitions.
In addition to the funding, we’re looking forward to providing opportunities for Babbasa’s young people to learn more about careers within the renewables sector. This includes plans for a site visit to one of our renewable energy projects.

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Babbasa group shot

We’re teaming up with Babbasa to help young people from disadvantaged backgrounds overcome barriers to education or employment.

Supporting under-represented young people in Bristol

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According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), this 1.5°C target is critical if we’re to avoid the very worst impacts of climate change and was agreed by 196 parties at the COP21 conference in France in 2015, subsequently known as the ‘Paris Agreement’.
But under current policies, the government would only achieve just over half (54%) of the emissions cuts needed between now and 2030 to hit the target. This is made worse by the fact that the emissions gap – the difference between the target and projected emissions in 2030 – has <a href="https://friendsoftheearth.uk/climate/track-uk-breaking-its-2030-climate-promise" target="_blank" rel="noopener">grown by more than half (55%) over the last year</a>, thanks to a scaling back on climate action – including the decision to hold annual oil &amp; gas licencing rounds.
And its not just the UK that is falling behind. A new report from the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) confirmed that urgent action is needed, with the world currently on track for 2.5 to 2.9°C of heating this century. With temperatures soaring and episodes of extreme weather becoming more and more frequent, the UN’s secretary general, Antonio Guterres, has said that the world is heading for a “hellish” future if we don’t act now.
<h3>What do we want to see as a result of COP28?</h3>
<h4>1. A commitment to fully phase out fossil fuels</h4>
In 2016, parties attending COP26 in Glasgow agreed to “accelerate the phasedown of unabated coal power and phase-out of inefficient fossil fuel subsidies”. A year later at COP27, 80 countries called to have this language updated so that it included not only coal, but all fossil fuels. This was ultimately unsuccessful.
We’re now seeing this conversation continue to unfold, with countries allegedly considering calling for a formal phase-out of fossil fuels as part of the <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/fossil-fuel-phase-out-put-table-cop28-climate-talks-2023-12-05/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">summit&#8217;s final deal to tackle global heating</a>. The topic is certainly causing debate, however, with four times the number of oil and gas producing countries attending COP28 compared to last year’s conference. It perhaps doesn’t come as a surprise that we’re also hearing some extremely worrying statements being made about fossil fuels and their impact on climate change. It has been reported that COP President, Sultan Al Jaber, stated that there is “no science” backing up the need to phase out fossil fuels and that doing so would not allow for sustainable development, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/dec/03/back-into-caves-cop28-president-dismisses-phase-out-of-fossil-fuels" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“unless you want to take the world back into caves”</a>. This comes as the latest <a href="https://productiongap.org/">Production Gap report</a> has revealed that governments, in aggregate, still plan to produce more than double the amount of fossil fuels in 2030 than would be consistent with limiting warming to 1.5°C.
Put simply, there is no net zero future that includes oil and gas. What we need from our government and other world leaders is a final and binding commitment to phase out all fossil fuels, as well as faster action to reduce emissions today. We will be keeping a close eye on the negotiations and hope to see this addressed as talks come to a close next week.
<h4>2. Investment incentives for clean technologies</h4>
Ahead of the conference, the United Arab Emirates’ COP28 presidency, International Renewables Energy Agency (IRENA) and the Global Renewables Alliance issued a joint report claiming that renewable energy capacity needs to “reach more than 11,000 GW” by 2030. Following this, we’ve seen leaders from more than 110 countries commit to a collective effort to <a href="https://renews.biz/89878/global-leaders-agree-to-triple-renewables-capacity-by-2030/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">triple global renewable energy capacity by 2030</a>.
This will require a massive scaling up of public and private sector investment, which presents a huge opportunity &#8211; especially in contrast to the investment which continues to flow into finite fossil fuel reserves. Here in the UK, we need to see the government urgently address the investment landscape which has not only been impacted by inflation and interest rates, but by policy uncertainty and infrastructure issues like grid connection times, amongst other things.
We know that COP28 can be a huge platform for climate action, but we need the government to recognise this and be more ambitious so that we can reassert the UK’s leadership position when it comes to clean investment. In fact, <a href="https://www.energy-uk.org.uk/news/uk-falling-behind-in-race-for-clean-energy-investment/">analysis by Energy UK</a> has revealed that, without taking action to address these factors, the UK economy could lose out on £62 billion of investment between now and 2030. This would lead to a shortfall of 54 GW of potential wind and solar capacity, which represents enough generation to power every home in the UK.
<h4>3. Greater support for countries bearing the brunt of climate change</h4>
The sad truth about climate change is that it’s not a tomorrow problem, countries around the world are already facing the very real consequences of our reliance on fossil fuels, from droughts and wildfires to catastrophic flooding impacting every part of our lives, not least food production.
And a report published during COP28 has revealed that the amount of money needed for the energy transition, including climate adaptation and disaster relief, is monumental. According to the report, emerging markets and developing countries will <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/climate-finance-takes-centre-stage-cop28-climate-talks-2023-12-04/#:~:text=The%20amount%20of%20cash%20needed,challenges%20posed%20by%20climate%20change" target="_blank" rel="noopener">need $2.4 trillion a year in investment to cap emissions</a> and adapt to the challenges posed by climate change.
We were pleased to see the UK taking a step in the right direction, announcing a £1.6 billion climate aid package on COP28’s ‘Finance Day’, which it says has been structured to help mobilise private investment into emerging economies as a means of tackling climate change. <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/pm-to-call-for-era-of-action-at-cop28-climate-summit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The package includes £500 million in funding</a> to tackle the causes of deforestation, £316 million for energy innovation projects around the world and up to £60 million for loss and damage.
While there are rightly questions of whether this is to distract from the scaling down of green policies at home in the UK, we agree that an ‘era of action’ is required. And it’s not just about investing in climate risk mitigation, we must keep sight of addressing the cause of climate change itself. This will cost far less and be far more efficient than having to defend ourselves against an ever increasing tide of catastrophic climate events.
As usual, COP28 has seen a number of pledges and commitments made but it will be interesting to see how these progress in the next 12 months. Instead of just talking, we’re committed to taking action: funding and building new clean energy projects that provide cleaner, cheaper power to homes across the country, while also contributing towards the UK’s net zero targets.
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Thrive renewables open day in Avonmouth. September 2022.

We urge our global leaders attending COP28 to benchmark the cost of action against the catastrophic price of inaction.

Not sure COP is much COP? It's time to start doing something about climate change

Its recent tests have shown that fluid within the deep geothermal wells at United Downs in Cornwall contained around 340 parts per million (ppm) of lithium &#8211; the highest concentration of lithium found in any commercial geothermal lithium project in Europe. Having provided the first commercial funding for United Downs in 2020 and further investment for the power plant construction in 2023, we’re thrilled to hear the project’s latest development which could see GEL fulfil a significant portion of the UK’s lithium demand.      
GEL was recently awarded £1.8m by the Automotive Transformation Fund (ATF) Scale up Readiness programme.  They aim to produce around 100 tonnes per annum (tpa) of Lithium Carbonate Equivalent (LCE) in late 2024 which they say will be ramped up to at least 1,000 tpa from United Downs as early as 2026.  Planning permission has been secured for two other geothermal projects in Cornwall and GEL aims to rapidly expand production to over 12,000 tpa in the UK by 2030. They report this is enough to produce around 250,000 electric vehicle batteries for an average sized car [1], or 94% of the LCE needed to supply the <a class="js-scroll-done" href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/vehicle-licensing-statistics-2022/vehicle-licensing-statistics-2022#:~:text=In%202022%2C%20new%20car%20registrations,267%2C000%20BEV%20cars%20(16%25)" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-anchor="#:~:text=In%202022%2C%20new%20car%20registrations,267%2C000%20BEV%20cars%20(16%25)">267,000</a> new Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) registered in the UK in 2022 [2]. 
Lithium can be sustainably extracted from geothermal fluid, avoiding the energy-intensive production processes currently used such as mining.

After providing the first commercial funding for the United Downs geothermal power plant in 2020, Thrive invested an additional £3 million in the project in 2023 to fund construction.  
[1] The average amount of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) per car is 47.4kg.  Sources IEA, World Economic Forum, Reuters, Goldman Sachs. GEL production target is 12,000 tonnes of LCE per year. Therefore, number of cars per year is circa 250,000. 
[2] <a class="js-scroll-done" href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/vehicle-licensing-statistics-2022/vehicle-licensing-statistics-2022#:~:text=In%202022%2C%20new%20car%20registrations,267%2C000%20BEV%20cars%20(16%25)" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-anchor="#:~:text=In%202022%2C%20new%20car%20registrations,267%2C000%20BEV%20cars%20(16%25)">According to the UK Government</a>, 267,000 Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) were registered in 2022.

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High concentration of lithium found at United Downs geothermal project could support growing UK electric vehicle industry.

United Downs geothermal generation plant set to deliver UK's first commercial quantities of lithium for car batteries

This year the event was hosted at the Lowry Theatre in Manchester, and we were thrilled to be attending as a finalist in the Collaboration in Community Energy category alongside our friends Aura Power, Bristol Energy Cooperative (BEC) and RADE (Residents Against Dirty Energy). 
The award recognised “the most commendable collaboration between a community energy organisation and its partners”, with entrants required to “demonstrate outstanding efforts in supporting and advancing community energy through partnerships, investments, policy advocacy, or various forms of assistance, which have increased community energy activity or impact”.  
We were nominated for our 20 MW Feeder Road battery project in Bristol, which we acquired from Aura in 2020. It was down to great campaigning work by RADE and BEC that stopped the site being home to a polluting diesel STOR generator, which neither contributes to the UK’s net zero journey nor benefits the local community, instead of a battery storage project which is a cleaner technology and enables more renewables to be connected to the grid. Currently in the latter stages of commissioning, we’ve now offered BEC an opportunity for shared ownership, giving local people the opportunity to take a stake.    
We’re particularly proud of the project’s backstory, which shows how business can work together with the local community to develop solutions that will have a positive impact; environmentally, socially and financially. It was great to also have this recognised by Community Energy England on the night, especially against some tough competition in BHESCo, Sustainable Hayfield and Community Energy Together. A big congratulations again to all the other winners and finalists – we look forward to celebrating another year of progress at the 2024 awards! 
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Members of the Thrive team travelled to Manchester for the Community Energy Awards last week – and we were thrilled to take home the award for ‘Collaboration in Community Energy’ alongside Aura Power, Bristol Energy Cooperative and RADE.

Celebrating our collaborative (and award winning!) funding approach at the Community Energy Awards

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Below we summarise the updates relating to green policies and share our thoughts on where we would like to see more clarity and commitment as we look forward to COP28 and the government’s next significant update: the Autumn Budget.  
<h3>What were the measures relating to clean energy?</h3>
As part of the speech, the government announced that it is aiming to attract record levels of investment into renewables, but very little detail around how this would be achieved. What investors need is certainty – not just a line in a speech. <a href="https://www.energy-uk.org.uk/news/uk-falling-behind-in-race-for-clean-energy-investment/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Research by Energy UK</a> has found that between now and 2050, an additional £500 billion will need to be invested into the UK power sector in order for us to meet our net zero goals. This represents a big growth opportunity but also makes stability and certainty absolutely crucial for the sector.  
In addition to investment, the announcement noted plans to reform grid connections, which is one of the major barriers developers are currently facing and is keeping hundreds of gigawatts of wind, solar and battery storage locked in a years-long queue. Again, it’s great to see this issue recognised but the devil is in the detail, and we await further clarity on how this challenge will actually be overcome.   
It’s fair to say that these positives were largely overshadowed by the announcement that the government plans to legislate annual North Sea oil and gas licensing rounds, based on the argument that it would help the “country to transition to net zero by 2050, without adding undue burden on households”. This is something that Thrive absolutely disputes. There is no net zero future that includes oil and gas. Are we not seeing the proof of that on a near daily basis? We know that burning fossil fuels to generate energy releases huge amounts of polluting CO2 into the atmosphere, leading to global heating which is causing dangerous freak weather events around the world. There is also no proof that oil and gas will have a positive impact on energy security – especially as these resources will be sold and consumed on the global market – or that it will help the thousands of households dealing with fuel poverty as a result of the ongoing energy and cost of living crises.  
This comes after prime minister Rishi Sunak recently back pedalled on other green policies. In September, he announced that he was delaying the ban on petrol cars, extending the deadline to replace gas boilers and even cancelling new energy efficiency regulations for private landlords which could cost their tenants almost £8bn in higher bills <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-66864122" target="_blank" rel="noopener">over the next decade</a>. 
<h3>How should we be moving forward?</h3>
We believe that the best way to boost energy security, reduce household bills for consumers and achieve net zero is to accelerate our transition to a homegrown, renewables-based energy system. Onshore wind and solar are amongst the cheapest ways to generate electricity today, however these naturally replenished energy sources are massively underutilised. What we need to see is the government back up its commitment to achieving record levels of renewable investment through solid policies that not only allow these projects to be built but actively encourage them. And we’re not alone in this thinking.  
As Conservative MP Chris Skidmore outlined in his independent Mission Zero report, net zero is the economic opportunity of the 21st century – giving the impression that it’s an expensive luxury, rather than a necessity, is dangerous. In fact, consultancy Cambridge Econometrics, on behalf of the Climate Change Committee, found that the UK will see around 2% additional GDP growth due to new jobs, increased economic activity, lower fossil fuel imports and cost savings such as reduced household bills because of the transition. 
We also know that the window for avoiding the worst effects of the climate emergency is getting rapidly smaller. A recent study by Imperial College London estimates that the world will exhaust its remaining carbon budget for limiting global warming to 1.5°C by the end of this decade if emissions continue at current levels. Now is not the time to be slowing down. Instead, the UK should be seizing the opportunity and setting an example for developing economies to follow suit. Unfortunately, the issuing of new oil and gas licences is another setback and directly contradicts this need for acceleration.  
As always, Thrive’s response is action. We will continue to invest in and build new onshore wind, solar and geothermal energy as we know that these projects are what will allow generations to come to enjoy a fairer, cleaner world.  
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We were pleased to see the government seeking ‘record levels’ of renewable investment, as well as promising an acceleration in grid connection times, but its decision to issue new oil and gas licences is a big disappointment.

There is no such thing as 'net zero oil and gas': We respond to the King's speech

We expect these community hubs will continue to act as warm and welcoming refuges for residents this year in the face of the ongoing cost of living crisis. In addition, we’re providing energy essentials training to community volunteers in order to help local people improve energy efficiency in their homes.
A record number of applications were made for round seven of our Community Benefit Programme which is run by national energy charity, Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE).

In total we have awarded £37,692.89 of funding to the following 10 community centres across the UK:
<ul>
<li>Debenham Shed</li>
<li>Halton Community Association</li>
<li>Littleport Scout and Guide Joint Headquarters Management Committee</li>
<li>Millom Methodist Church</li>
<li>Orkney Natural History Society</li>
<li>PCC St Peters Church March</li>
<li>Peedie Kirk URC</li>
<li>Tivetshall Village Hall</li>
<li>The Groundwork South Trust Limited</li>
<li>Young Bristol</li>
</ul>
The grants will enable these community organisations to make crucial energy efficiency improvements to their buildings ahead of winter, such as roof, window and wall insulation, double glazing and LED lighting. CSE are also offering a series of webinars for these communities on topics including fuel poverty awareness and basic energy advice, community approaches to tackling fuel poverty and energy efficiency in community buildings.
Since we first started the programme in 2016, we have awarded 61 grants to 50 buildings, totalling over £190,000 nationally and saving 85 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions each year.

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We’ve awarded energy efficiency grants to community buildings across the UK, in addition to energy essentials training.

Thrive donates over £37,000 to help communities improve energy efficiency in record year for community benefit programme

Our new crowdfunded share offer is now open, giving you the opportunity to invest in new clean energy projects which cut carbon emissions, help reduce household bills and benefit communities.
The climate emergency is worsening, manifesting itself in heatwaves, droughts and catastrophic flooding around the world. But there is still time to act. By transitioning to a renewables-based energy system, we remove the need to burn polluting fossil fuels.
That’s why we have ambitious plans to build more onshore wind, solar, geothermal and battery storage projects over the next five years, with an aim to double the clean energy generation capacity in our portfolio. To finance this, we’re kicking off with a £2 million raise via the Triodos crowdfunding platform as part of a wider fundraising campaign to raise £10 million in the next six months and a total of £50 million by 2028.

We already have a busy pipeline of projects to deliver including 192 MW of new solar PV and battery storage through our £20 million investment in Ethical Power. We also plan to fund more ‘direct wire’ projects, giving UK businesses access to a direct supply of clean electricity, and community energy groups building their own clean energy projects locally. We recently invested £4 million in Scottish community energy group, ATTIX CIC, so that it could move forward with constructing Scotland’s first subsidy free, 100% community-owned onshore wind turbine just outside Kilbirnie, North Ayrshire.
These new deals complement our existing portfolio of 22 operational projects which generated £5.9 million of operating profits and delivered the equivalent of 28,000 tonnes of carbon emission reductions in the first half of 2023.

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Other recent development projects include providing £4 million funding to construct England’s largest onshore wind turbine, which is wholly community-owned, and a 20 MW battery in our home city of Bristol, plus a total of £6 million investment in United Downs – the UK’s first deep geothermal electricity generation plant in Cornwall, which also has the potential for the extraction of lithium for battery manufacture.
Now open, the minimum investment in the crowdfunding offer is £243 (100 shares) and shares can be held in a self-invested personal pension (SIPP). We are targeting 5-8% return per year through a combination of dividends and increasing share value. As with all investments, returns are not guaranteed, and investors may not get back all, or any, of their original investment.
For the first half of 2023, we posted an operating profit of £5.9 million and a turnover of £12.3 million. With £110 million of assets under management, shareholders received a 12 pence per share annual dividend in July 2023. Investors should note that past performance is no indication of future likely performance.
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Thrive battery storage

Ambitious plans to fund and build over 100MW of new onshore wind, solar and battery storage by the end of 2028.

New share offer open - Help us double our generation capacity over the next five years

Construction is currently underway and is expected to be completed by the end of next year. Once operational, the turbine will have the capacity to generate 7,839 MWh of clean electricity per year, the equivalent of powering 2,234 average UK homes, and will also deliver 3,324 tonnes of carbon emissions reductions annually. Profits from electricity sales will be reinvested back into the local area, which could include local sports and recreational facilities, as well as supporting the refurbishment of the Knox Institute building – a one-time important community hub.
Thrive’s funding is complemented by a £1.6 million investment from responsible finance provider, Social Investment Scotland, as part of a blended finance package, while Local Energy Scotland supported the project through planning and design with funding via the Scottish Government’s Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES).

The community group has overcome various challenges to get the project through to the construction stage, after commercial developers previously tried and failed to secure planning for the site. Recognising the benefits an onshore wind project could bring to the community, ATTIX proposed a new planning approach for its project in 2018 and, after receiving vital development funding from CARES, the group successfully gained planning permission in 2019.
While the impact of higher energy prices, inflation and grid constraints nearly stalled the project once again, we came on board alongside Social Investment Scotland in September 2023.
The Scottish Government has set a target of 2 GW of renewable energy to be community or locally owned by 2030. <a href="https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/report/community-and-locally-owned-energy-in-scotland-2022-report/">Research from Energy Saving Trust</a> has found that an estimated 908 MW of community and locally owned renewable energy capacity from 26,290 installations was operational in Scotland by the end of December 2022. This is estimated to produce 1,933 GWh of renewable energy annually.
CARES was established in 2010 to encourage local and community ownership of renewable energy projects across Scotland and to help maximise the benefits of renewable energy systems, whether commercial or community owned. Delivered on the government’s behalf by Local Energy Scotland, it has provided more than £58 million in funding to applicants and supported more than 600 projects across the country in total.

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Kilbirnie

The project will benefit local people living in the Garnock Valley and support Scotland’s transition to net zero.

£4 million investment into community energy group Attix CIC enables them to build Scotland's first subsidy free, 100% community owned onshore wind turbine

The ban, first introduced by former PM David Cameron in 2015, meant an objection from just one person could stop a new onshore wind turbine from being built in England. It also meant that any new development had to be constructed in an area identified as suitable for onshore wind as part of the council’s local plan (footnote 54 in the National Planning Policy Framework) – a requirement which is not applied to any other infrastructure project.  
But with many UK households feeling the effects of the ongoing energy and cost of living crises, the government has faced increasing pressure to ease these planning restrictions so that the country can start benefitting from cheaper, cleaner power. 
<h3>What exactly has the government said? </h3>
The government confirmed that it is streamlining planning permission for new onshore wind farms with immediate effect, claiming that the changes will allow ‘local areas [to] have a greater say in how onshore wind projects should be considered, ultimately resulting in electricity bill savings and increased national energy security’. 
According to the government website, ‘The measures include broadening the ways that suitable locations can be identified, including by communities, and speeding up the process of allocating sites by giving alternatives to the local plan process. This will ensure the whole community has a say, not just a small number of objectors – paving the way for more onshore wind projects to come online where they have community support.’

One issue with the government’s announcement is the continued lack of clarity around ‘community support’ and how they will be expected to demonstrate this. We have a robust planning process in place for all other infrastructure projects, whether it be housing, roads or other renewable energy technologies, that allow for and take into account community feedback. So why, for onshore wind, are we asking communities to proactively evidence that they’re in support of a project?  
The deviation in requirements suggests that there’s a presumption that the general public are against onshore wind. This is simply not the case – according to the government’s own figures, just 12% oppose a wind farm in their own community. 
<h3>What does it mean moving forward? </h3>
While we await a secondary announcement in the Autumn, it looks like these changes will, at best, make it slightly less difficult to build new onshore windfarms in England. 
We know that onshore wind can generate cleaner, cheaper and homegrown electricity that helps keep household bills down, but the government is failing to treat it like any other infrastructure project. What we really want to see is a level playing field and a removal of footnote 54 from the National Planning Policy Framework.  
The Ambition Community Energy (ACE) turbine in Bristol is proof that onshore wind is not only popular with communities but can have tangible economic and social benefits too. Profits from electricity sales from the 4.2 MW turbine will be reinvested back into the Lawrence Weston community, while the ACE team are also planning to set up an Energy Learning Zone, which will give local residents the opportunity to upskill and learn about green careers. 
As proud funders of the ACE turbine, the only onshore wind farm to be built in England so far this year, we will continue working with people and businesses to make projects happen and promote the benefits of local generation. 
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Wind turbine NO LOGO

After a campaign from backbench MPs, the government announced that it is ‘loosening’ planning restrictions on onshore wind in England.

Has the UK really lifted the de facto ban on onshore wind in England?

After 22 years, you can imagine how productive a life these blades have had – generating over 88 GWh of clean electricity and travelling just over eight million miles in total. That’s the equivalent to making a quarter of a million return journeys from Thrive’s office in Bristol to Sigurd in an electric vehicle!
The blades now need replacing in order to extend the operational life of Sigurd. In some instances, it’s possible to reuse blades when a whole turbine is decommissioned, which is the exercise we undertook when repowering our Caton Moor wind farm in Lancashire. However, when blades are calculated to reach the end of their life, reuse isn’t possible. This raises the question; how can we dispose of the blades in the most sustainable way?
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Although the blades from Sigurd can’t be reused for renewable energy generation, they can be repurposed. With the new rotor now fitted at Sigurd and the old blades taken off, we’re pleased to be working with <a href="https://www.reblade.co.uk/about-us">ReBlade</a> to repurpose as much of the blades as possible. They will be turned into useful items for businesses, councils and communities, which could include sustainable bike shelters, EV charging stations, or even bespoke dining tables.

Made primarily from fiberglass and other composite materials, wind turbine blades are difficult to recycle. ReBlade is the first UK company to decommission turbine blades without the use of landfill, pioneering innovative approaches to blade handling that enable circular end-destinations for blade waste.

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Sigurd 1

The 22-year-old turbine blades that have reached end-of-life will be repurposed into furniture for councils, communities and businesses.

Turbines to tabletops - We're working with Reblade to reduce waste at our Sigurd wind farm

In <a href="https://www.positive.news/society/how-uk-businesses-can-ramp-up-progress-on-the-sdgs/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">our latest article with Positive News UK,</a> you can find out how the UK is progressing in building a fair and sustainable future, and how businesses can make a tangible difference to people and planet. You can also find out more about how Thrive’s work supports the UN SDGs via our <a href="https://www.thriverenewables.co.uk/thriverenewablesimpactreport.co.uk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Impact Report here</a>.
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Rooftop solar TR Olympus Power

For Global Goals Week, we discuss the role of businesses in protecting the planet and tackling poverty in support of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Positive News UK: How can UK businesses supercharge progress on the UN Sustainable Development Goals?

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Half year operating profits were £5.9 million on a turnover of £12.3 million, with shareholders receiving a final dividend of 12p per share for 2022, which was paid in July.
With many people still feeling the consequences of the UK’s reliance on dirty, expensive fossil fuels, we’re continuing to fund and build new clean energy projects that not only contribute to the country’s decarbonisation goals but deliver cleaner, cheaper power for people today.
<h3>Strong performance across the portfolio</h3>
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We were pleased to report the successful construction of England’s largest onshore wind turbine during the first half of the year, which we helped fund with a £4 million investment. The 4.2 MW turbine in Bristol is the only onshore wind turbine to be built this year in England and is now generating clean electricity, with profits being reinvested back into the local community.
In addition, we’re proud to say that we’re the first commercial battery owner in the UK to offer a local community group an opportunity for shared ownership of a standalone battery storage project. Bristol Energy Cooperative (BEC) will be able to make a co-investment of up to 20% in our 20 MW battery project on Feeder Road in Bristol. The addition of this project alongside the ACE turbine and our existing 8.2 MW Avonmouth wind farm means that we’ve now funded more than a third of Bristol’s total renewable electricity generation and storage capacity (37%).
<h3>Growing pipeline of clean energy projects </h3>
Entering the second half of the year in a strong position, we have a range of new projects in the pipeline to continue growing our portfolio of wind, solar, geothermal, hydro and battery projects. This includes our biggest single investment to date, which has seen us provide a £20 million loan to Ethical Power to help fund 192 MW of new solar PV and battery storage projects across the UK.
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[1] Refers to Thrive’s impact portfolio – total electricity generation of the portfolio adjusted for Thrive’s proportion of ownership, plus the projects Thrive is funding.
[2] Calculated using the most recent statistics from the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) showing that UK average domestic household consumption is 3,509 kWh per annum (1,755 kWh for a half year) <a href="https://www.renewableuk.com/page/UKWEDExplained" target="_blank" rel="noopener">https://www.renewableuk.com/page/UKWEDExplained. </a>

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THRIVE OxfordVisit-24

Significant progress with diversification strategy, including our biggest single investment to date.

Strong performance from the portfolio with an increase in operating profits - half year results 2023

The record low is followed by the symbolic closure of the UK’s last coal fired power station at Ratcliffe-on-Soar in September – ending over a century of burning coal to generate electricity.
At the beginning of the 20th century, coal accounted for more than 95% of the UK’s electricity generation. Now it is 0%.
The UK is the first G7 nation to completely phase out the use of coal to generate power. A few weeks ago, the government also confirmed it will introduce legislation to ban new coal mining licences.
Whilst renewables have played a crucial role in helping the UK phase out coal, we’ve still got a lot of work to do. In its recent report the National Energy Systems Operator stressed that net zero by 2030 is ambitious but achievable, if we expand renewables capacity swiftly and significantly – tripling solar and doubling onshore wind.
As the UK shifts towards a new era of green energy jobs, it’s crucial that no one is left behind and we’re working hard to play our part in a fair and inclusive energy transition. Thrive is proud to help fund community-led projects like the Ambition Community Energy wind turbine in Bristol which is providing a deprived community with a source of revenue. The charity behind the project, Ambition Lawrence Weston, is also preparing local people to take their place in the changing green economy through community-based advice, support and upskilling.

Newsletter CTA

Record low for fossil fuels on the grid as renewables soar.

Life after coal: what's next for UK energy?

<a href="/news/2024/11/vision-for-the-future-facilitating-a-just-transition" target="_blank" rel="noopener">In our last blog,</a> we shared the ways we’re working to facilitate a just transition, from using our business as a force for good to supporting community owned renewable energy projects. As part of our 30th birthday celebrations, we asked influential climate campaigners for their thoughts on what the wider sector needs to do to achieve a just energy transition by the end of the decade. 
James Vaccaro  
Catalyst, strategist and thought leader in sustainability and positive impact finance, CEO of RePattern and former Thrive Executive Director.  
<ol>
<li> Integrating smarter design into energy infrastructure to help deliver multiple positive social and environmental impacts. That can include greater community ownership and social benefits, but also schemes such as agri-solar. </li>
<li> The community-of-interest ownership model, alongside cooperatives and other shared-ownership models, offer a balanced solution to support investment in key assets – including nature restoration sites, transmission and storage infrastructure etc. </li>
<li> It is important for leadership within the industry to integrate adaptation and mitigation solutions (efficiency measures plus generation) to support community resilience– in conjunction with well-designed local development plans that address other areas of vulnerability.</li>
</ol>
Emma Howard Boyd CBE 
Previously Chair of the Environment Agency and an ex-officio board member of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Currently Chair of ClientEarth, Chair of the London Climate Resilience Review and former Thrive Non Executive Director.  
We are entering a new era. The world’s warmest year on record was 2023. Europe is warming at around twice the global rate.  
This June to August, in 2024, is currently on course to be the world’s hottest on record, even as El Niño fades. And wherever you are in the world, it’s the most vulnerable – those who’ve contributed the least to this catastrophe – who are forced to shoulder the heaviest burden of its consequences. A recent paper in ‘Nature’ said: “Given how close 2023 was to the ominous 1.5°C warming threshold, it is imperative that we prepare for previously unthinkable and unseasonal heat extremes.”  
With a new national government taking power, now is the time to emphasise that making smarter, more resilient choices to achieve a just energy transition is in the long-term interest. 
<ol>
<li> Simply put, adaptation is non negotiable and ensuring the most vulnerable benefit from adaptation should be a guiding principle. </li>
<li> Action must prioritise those who face the greatest harm and those least able to cope with climate impacts. </li>
<li> Finally, failure to prepare for climate impacts heightens risks and threatens efforts to reach net zero. Without due regard to climate adaptation, risk is “baked-in” to the lifetime of assets, projects become less viable, and the benefits reduce over time. It’s a choice between building in climate resilience or locking in climate vulnerability.</li>
</ol>
Jonathon Porritt CBE  
An eminent writer and campaigner on sustainable development and President of Population Matters.  
<ol>
<li> For wind, solar and storage to accelerate at the speed that is now so desperately needed, we need, first, to kill oil. And then to kill gas. This terminology will offend some people. “Oil Kills” is the latest slogan from Just Stop Oil, and many disagree with JSO’s combative, uncompromising tactics. But the time for cohabitation is long gone. Our continuing addiction to oil (as President George Bush put it back in 2006!) is already literally killing tens of thousands of people now – and will kill tens of millions in the future. </li>
<li> That’s why people need to hear the whole truth about climate science – we don’t have time for mealy-mouthed niceties any longer. It’s already too late to avoid horrendous costs as we pump more and more CO2 into the atmosphere. But it’s not too late to avoid total breakdown. </li>
<li> Even as we bring an end to the big oil and gas companies, we must protect the economic well-being of all those who work for them – apart from their senior executives, who’ve already benefited enough to last them several lifetimes! We must therefore be prepared to invest in re-skilling these key workers to play their part in the new energy economy emerging so dynamically in our midst.</li>
</ol>

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dun sunset - credit scott maclean

We ask influential climate campaigners for their thoughts on one of the industry’s most pressing issues.     

What three changes do we need to make to achieve a just energy transition by 2030?

Many of these community spaces act as warm refuges for local people to connect and access support services but they are often cold and expensive to heat. Thrive’s funding will help keep these spaces warm, whilst reducing their carbon footprint and energy bills.

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As part of the application process, applicants were asked to complete a full energy survey of the shared building using guidance provided by CSE to identify potential improvements and calculate carbon and cost savings.  
Nine community centres across the UK have been awarded funding: 
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="2" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">Trinity Arts Centre near Avonmouth wind farm, Bristol </li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="2" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1">58th Fife (Glenrothes) Scout Group near Dunfermline wind project, Fife </li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="2" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1">Grange Methodist Church near Caton Moor wind farm, Lancashire </li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="2" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="4" data-aria-level="1">St Werburghs City Farm near Avonmouth wind farm, Bristol </li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="2" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="5" data-aria-level="1">Dunfermline St Columba&#8217;s Church of Scotland near Dunfermline wind project, Fife  </li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="2" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="6" data-aria-level="1">Tivetshall Village Hall near Eye wind turbine, Norfolk </li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="2" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="7" data-aria-level="1">Seething and Mundham Village Hall near Ness Point wind turbine, Norfolk </li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="2" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="8" data-aria-level="1">Satterwaite Parish Room near Haverigg wind turbine, Cumbria </li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="2" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" aria-setsize="-1" data-aria-posinset="9" data-aria-level="1">Radio City Association near Kilbirnie wind turbine, Ayrshire </li>
</ul>
The grants will enable these community organisations to make crucial energy efficiency improvements to their buildings ahead of winter, such as roof, window and wall insulation, double glazing and LED lighting.  
Since we first started the programme in 2016, we have awarded 70 grants to 58 buildings, totalling over £225,000 nationally. As of 2024, the energy efficiency improvements funded by Thrive are saving an estimated 94 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions each year.

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