Strategic joint venture to mobilise community-owned wind and solar projects across the UK
The challenge
For net zero to be equitably achieved by 2050, communities need to be active and willing participants in the transition. This will ensure that citizens are able to share the benefits of a more sustainable economy. Community energy schemes are one way to achieve this, with projects generating x12 times the local economic value of commercial energy. Such schemes have funded fuel poverty work, yielding a 9:1 social return on investment. However, community energy generates only 0.5% of the UK’s electricity.
Our approach
We have co-invested alongside Thrive Renewables plc to develop The Community Energy Catalyst. The initiative will support local communities to build their own clean energy infrastructure or secure stakes in larger regional renewable energy schemes. The joint venture will target larger scale, late-stage development projects that have already secured planning consent, enabling them to advance through to construction, commissioning and operation while aligning with local objectives.
The Fund
The Community Energy Catalyst will make investments ranging between £0.5 million to £30 million in individual projects which are at least 1MW in size and employ proven technologies such as onshore and offshore wind, solar PV and hydroelectric.
The loan is serviced by the profits of the sustainable infrastructure, with operational outperformance allowing the community groups to channel higher operating profits towards accelerated debt repayments.
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Fund size
£40 million -
Better Society Capital commitment
£20 million
Key information
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Geography
UK wide -
Investment type
Investment Manager -
Investment status
Current -
Investment date
March 2025 -
Term
25-year facility
Scotland’s first subsidy free, 100% community-owned onshore wind turbine
CEC has invested £4 million in Attix Community Interest Company (CIC) to enable them to complete construction of a 2.5MW community-owned turbine just outside Kilbirnie in North Ayrshire. Construction is underway and the turbine is expected to be commissioned by the end of 2025. Once built, it will be the first 100% community-owned onshore wind turbine in Scotland to operate commercially, without the benefit of government price support mechanisms.
Once operational, the turbine will have the capacity to generate 7,839 MWh of clean electricity per year, the equivalent of powering 2,234 average UK homes, and will also deliver 3,324 tonnes of carbon emissions reductions annually. Profits from electricity sales will be reinvested back into the local area, which could include local sports and recreational facilities, as well as supporting the refurbishment of the Knox Institute building – a one-time important community hub.
Thrive initially invested into the project in 2023 and the loan was transferred to CEC in July 2025.
