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Communities

Our Aims

We have been involved in leading and supporting the growth of the community energy sector in Scotland since 2002. Our region is recognised as a leader in community energy innovation. Many communities are trailblazing innovative developments, leading their communities through a transition to a strong, low carbon economy.

• Direct Ownership
  We aim to build on the strong platform of investment made in recent years to ensure we maximise the number of communities who can benefit from community-owned renewable energy projects.
• Shared Ownership
  We will support communities to invest in commercial development opportunities such as those on the National Forest Estate and beyond.
• Local Energy Economies
  In addition to funding policy forming research, we will invest in the development of innovative approaches to overcome local level grid constraints to facilitate local use of energy. We have been working with Community Energy Scotland to develop this Local Energy Economy agenda
• Innovative Finance Solutions
  We will also focus on innovative funding solutions as the majority of small scale opportunities are likely to be unattractive to mainstream funders. This intervention will ensure that communities across the region are able to benefit from the significant potential of the sector

A Partnership Approach

HIE will work in partnership with others to ensure the support and conditions are correct for communities across the area to provide a clear route for the development of their community energy project. Some of our key partners include the Scottish Government, Scottish Investment Bank (REIF), Local Energy Scotland (CARES) and Community Energy Scotland.

Find out more about the work HIE is involved with, including the Low Carbon Infrastructure Transition Programme (LCITP), Local Energy Challenge Fund and the new HI-SHARES programme.