Art meets solar in Octopus Energy’s new community energy installation
Energy and technology group Octopus Energy has completed work on its first ever community solar energy installation in Walthamstow, East London, UK.
Project POWER STATION, started by Walthamstow based artists Hilary Powell and Daniel Edelstyn, aims to install solar panels on as many houses as possible in one street to create their own local green power station.
The initiative lets residents generate clean electricity that benefits them and their local community, save money on their energy bills and lower their carbon footprint.
Hilary and Daniel crowdfunded £113,000 ($145,000) by sleeping on their rooftop and have used this to offer Lynmouth Road residents in Walthamstow subsidised solar installations via Octopus Energy.
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The partnership started in June and in just one week Octopus has completed the installation of solar panels on all 13 houses that have joined the project so far with the potential to expand to 30 homes in total.
The Lynmouth road ‘power station’ has the potential to expand to 30 homes in total.
The solar panels will aim to reduce bills by a third. The houses that join the POWER STATION will also see an average carbon reduction of 70% and help reduce costs for all bill payers by decreasing demand on the grid.
Octopus is committed to working with communities to help them use and benefit from renewable energy. The company pioneered this with its ‘Fan Club’ tariff in 2021, where customers living near a wind turbine are offered cheaper energy when the wind blows.
The vision of POWER STATION provides Octopus Energy an opportunity to test the viability of further community-led solar projects in the future.
Rebecca Dibb-Simkin, chief product officer at Octopus Energy Group, comments: “This project fills me with so much joy and pride – it’s a powerful example of the tremendous impact people can have in accelerating the green energy revolution.
“Hilary and Dan didn’t come from the energy industry, and yet they found a way to help their community move to green power and massively reduce their energy bills. We are delighted to have joined forces.”
