Solar PV projects

Solar PV projects on school sites

As freeholder of respective maintained school sites, the Council is required to sign a 25-year lease with the provider for the air space above parts of the school to enable project commencement. The respective schools additionally sign a power purchase agreement with the provider to enable a reduction in energy charges to the school.

The lease addresses the long-term building and panels liability to the Council. As a result of the alterations, the discounted energy unit rate p/kWh charges for solar energy generated and used on site, will not be quite as beneficially low for the school.

The Power Purchase Agreement (‘the Agreement’) is a concession contract, the test for a concession contract being set out in Regulation 3 of the Concessions Contract Regulations 2016. This agreement provides for a school to receive electricity without charge or at a discounted rate in exchange for which the solar PV provider will receive the Feed In Tariff allowance (FiT).

For your information, the FiT enabled providers to return energy to the national grid in exchange for a financial return. This ceased to exist on the 31 March 2019. Now that FiT has ended, East Sussex County Council schools can use an interest-free Salix loan to fund their solar PV system.

If you would like to purchase electricity generated in this way then please note that the attached lease should be issued by your providers at the commencement of communications. We are aware that certain providers are happy to work within the terms of the appended lease and equally there are some providers who cannot meet the terms and conditions. Please notify the Council Property Department of your chosen provider. It may assist you to forward an advance copy of any power purchase agreement for our information and in advising you further. The Energy Team will continue to assist you in obtaining energy consumption information.

Draft Lease [185.3 KB] [pdf]