9. Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on community renewable energy schemes? OAQ(5)0095(ERA)

The Welsh Government has a strong track record in supporting community renewable energy schemes. As a result of Welsh Government support, 11 schemes are up and running, providing benefit to the local area, and five more are in construction.

Thank you very much once again, Secretary, for that response. Very differently to the Mynydd y Gwair scheme, the response of local residents to the Awel Aman Tawe windfarm has been very positive, partially because of the size of it, but partially also because the local community profits directly from it. Would you agree, therefore, that there are lessons to be learnt by Welsh Government in terms of the need to support local communities that wish to see renewable energy schemes being developed, and what are your plans in that field?

I’m very happy to support local energy schemes. I’ve been very fortunate, in that I opened a small hydropower one in Merthyr Tydfil, I visited the one that you refer to, and I mentioned in my initial answer to you that we’ve got 11 schemes up and running due to the working of the local community. I think there are some very passionate people out there who are very tenacious. It’s a long process, and they’re absolutely determined to see the end. We’ve got a further five in construction, and I’m very happy to make sure that that funding is available to support those localities.

Many of us in the Chamber, Cabinet Secretary, are concerned about ensuring shorter economic supply chains in Wales to shore up local economies, and local energy generation is one key sector for that work. What steps can the Welsh Government take to encourage municipal energy generation in Wales?

I think there are some fantastic opportunities to be able to make savings in the areas that you’ve discussed. I’ve encouraged all Welsh public bodies to maximise the opportunity and, certainly, our green growth Wales initiative will help deliver these projects by providing a number of services, but also substantial finance.

One of the logjams that happen in this area, though, Minister, is within local councils that have to grant the applications of the various schemes that come forward. Do you believe that local councils are adequately knowledgeable of the benefits of local community schemes and, in fact, adequately knowledgeable of the best way of promoting them, whether it’s wind power, whether it’s river energy, or whatever it might be? Do we need to have further discussions or do you need to have further discussions with the Cabinet Secretary for local government as to how we might be able to encourage the removal of this logjam throughout Wales, so that we can get more of these schemes up and running?

It’s very important that local authorities do have that expertise in-house or, if not, they can collaborate with a neighbouring local authority to ensure that they do. I think that we don’t want to see logjams. I think it’s very important that these schemes are up and running as quickly as possible. I mentioned in my answer to Dai Lloyd that some of the people I’ve met who’ve brought forward these local schemes are very tenacious, because they’ve had to be. So, it’s really important that we don’t have those logjams in place.