Supporting Community Energy

That the Parliament welcomes the launch of the Energy Learning Network, which is a collaborative project that aims to maximise community energy across the UK by supporting more communities to access what it sees as the lasting social and financial benefits that come from community energy ownership, as seen in North Yell, where the community owns five wind turbines, in Tiree, where the community owns one 900kW turbine, and in Applecross, which benefits from a community hydro scheme; regrets that the community energy sector has, it considers, had to overcome multiple financial and regulatory barriers to achieve progress; acknowledges what it regards as the opportunity to expand community energy provided by the new UK Government’s Local Power Plan and the Scottish Government’s forthcoming Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan, and notes the seven calls to action for the Scottish Government from the Scottish Community Coalition on Energy, including setting a target for 100% community-owned energy, reviewing the opportunities and challenges from repowering, and establishing a national community wealth fund, to ensure that the wealth created from Scotland’s abundant natural resources is distributed to communities across Scotland as part of a just energy transition.