MCBAINS COOPER
PROPERTY & CONSTRUCTION CONSULTANCY
PRESS RELEASE
May 10, 2010.
NEW GOVERNMENT: RE-THINK “10% RENEWABLES” PLANNING RULES.
Property and construction consultancy McBains Cooper says the next government should look carefully at its planning permission “renewables” policy to prove its true understanding of the issue - and drive down the cost of green energy.
Current planning permission regulations dictate that new-builds must include design and construction features that generate at least 10% of their energy needs from on-site renewable energy equipment.
But Anthony Coumidis, Sustainability and Energy Director of McBains Cooper, says that in the vast majority of cases, moving the renewable energy generating equipment away from the building to which it is contributing power will generate even greater efficiencies.
“Investing, say, £250,000 in wind turbines that turn for 50% of the time on a city centre building will not yield as much power per unit of investment compared with an identically-costed development in an area where higher and more consistent wind speeds occur 75% of the time.
“Furthermore, unless the 10% renewables rule is enforced for the life of the building, commercially-challenged building owners will neglect energy generating equipment to the extent that after only a few years it may well have failed completely – but if the farm is centrally owned and maintained, then efficiencies will grow rather than fall.
“We live and learn, or, in our case, we design and help construct and we learn – and we’re learning that there are potentially better and more cost-efficient ways to generate renewable or green energy; and that’s not necessarily down to technology.
“We believe that instead of every new building having to generate 10% of its energy needs from on-site renewable energy equipment, each one should be assessed on its own merits.
“Some new buildings simply do not offer the highest possible return on investment in energy equipment, primarily because of their location.
“Wind speeds in city centres are, on average, far lower than on a coastline, so wind turbines will not run at their optimum, and low-rise buildings constructed in the shadow of bigger buildings may not benefit from efficient solar power generation.
“We would propose that developers take the proportion of budget they would have spent on renewables in a new-build and that it is contributed to a central fund which buys into much bigger and efficient wind, wave or solar power farms.
“This could be viewed as the green efficiency difference between 20 school-run cars and a school bus with its own bus lane. One has 20 build and design costs, and stops and starts – the other has one design cost, an economy-of-scale build cost and runs consistently and efficiently,” said Anthony Coumidis.
Ends
Further information:
Iain Macauley / Chris Fowler
07788 978800 / 07719 172225
Notes.
McBains Cooper
McBains Cooper is an inter-discipline consultancy, specialising in property, infrastructure and construction, offering a wide range of consulting and design services including architectural, aesthetic or technical design, problem solving, budget management, facilities management, health and safety, sustainability consultancy and on-the-ground civil engineering. Driving and supporting projects ranging from minor works to major contracts worth more than £100 million, McBains Cooper operates across a variety of sectors throughout the UK , Europe and Latin America . McBains Cooper is committed to environmental, social and economic sustainable development and their integrated approach means they deliver effective, award-winning solutions to their clients. The Group employs 150 people. McBains Cooper has regional headquarters in London (head office), Birmingham , Glasgow , Leeds, Manchester , Oxford , Windsor , Lima (Peru ) and Mexico City , with associate offices in Belfast and Dublin
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