COP 27 – Energy: Back to the Future, local democracy, public ownership and social inclusion.

In his third talk on the Climate Crisis, Alan Simpson tackled the issue of energy production and distribution in a shift away from fossil fuel and towards green energy. Importantly, this is not simply a technological question of new inventions. This is about how to organize socially the production and distribution of energy differently, challenging directly the private ownership of the big energy companies.

 

Considering how much energy is lost at the point of production in large power plants and during the transmission of energy across the national grid, it will be key to re-organise the production, distribution and storage of energy locally. And there are plenty of examples across Europe, where this is already being done successfully, argued Alan Simpson. In France, car parks with more than 80 places will have to have solar roofs to generate energy. In Munich/Germany, the Ackermannbogen estate is an example of solar district heating covering 50 per cent of the estate’s heating needs. In Heerlen/The Netherlands, hot water from a disused, flooded coal mine is being used to provide heating for the whole city. In the UK, there are ca. 25000 disused coal mines, which could similarly be used for generating heating, supplying one in four people of the population. These are innovative, local solutions based on sustainable and renewable energy. They are based on legislation, permitting the local production and feeding of energy into the grid. There are, for example, 700 plus energy cooperatives in Germany alone, producing and selling energy in their locality.

Equally important to local networks is the fundamental nature of the energy system. In Denmark, electricity was re-defined as an essential service in the early 1970s, not as a commodity produced for making profit. Rather than struggling with record profits by large energy corporations, energy is consequently produced to cater for social needs. Unsurprisingly, it is the private energy sector, which has mobilized against localized, public energy systems. There is a clear concern about losing a hugely profitable market.

 

The model of how to generate energy collectively is not something we need to invent, Alan Simpson pointed out. It is right there in our history. The first municipal energy company was set up in Manchester in 1817 by the police commissioners to light the police station and main streets. This became the basis for municipal gas, energy and water companies across Britain in subsequent decades. By 1947, 50 per cent of municipalities’ income resulted from these companies, providing the basis for social infrastructure projects including local libraries, swimming pools, etc.

 

In subsequent discussions, participants debated possibilities for similar solutions in Nottinghamshire. How can we take control of energy production locally and use, for example, the roofs of schools for electricity generation to cover the school’s needs, but also provide energy in the local neighbourhood? How can we adjust planning permissions so that solar panels on roofs and heat pumps become a requirement for developers?

 

Importantly, people pointed to the wider social changes necessary to transform energy production. We need to re-appraise what is ‘security’ away from military security to the security of essential provisions such as energy underpinning a decent life. How can we define energy as a commons, a resource jointly produced and governed as well as jointly enjoyed? Clearly, the current legislative environment requires significant adjustments to make these transformative steps possible. And yet, there are clearly solutions. What has been missing to date is the political will to facilitate them.

Andreas Bieler

Professor of Political Economy

University of Nottingham/UK

Andreas.Bieler@nottingham.ac.uk

29 November 2022