Recap: The LEMA Summit 2024

We held our first Summit at Leeds Castle in Kent on 1st and 2nd October, and it was a great success! We deliberately chose Leeds Castle as it provides an ideal environment for meaningful debate and building relationships. With two half days of debate plus dinner we all had plenty of opportunity for both formal and informal discussions which exceeded everyone’s expectations .

The Summit was sponsored by Metis by SMS and CapGemini, and was oversubscribed! We managed to squeeze some extra people in so in the end 36 organisations from 6 countries (UK, France, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium and Australia) attended. Overall there was huge support for what LEMA is seeking to achieve, its unique approach and its collaborative nature.

Patrick Allcorn, Head of Local Net Zero at DESNZ, opened the Summit and we welcomed him lending his wide ranging and pragmatic experience to many discussions across the event.

The theme of the Summit was the need for ‘the last mile to become the first mile’ and amongst a breadth of outcomes, three main themes emerged supporting this sentiment.

1. Possibly the key recognition was the growing need to translate Local Area Energy Plans into action at street level. These plans are mainly technical in nature and need to be supported by supporting activities related to consumers, place, skills, finance, implementation, operations etc. Alongside the large-scale top-down grid and carbon initiatives, Local Authorities are facing real issues at local, in some cases hyper-local, levels - the ‘last mile’. This is where shared local energy systems have a major role to play representing a major business and employment opportunity. Furthermore, the twin objectives of a net zero grid and 1.5m new all-electric homes by 2030 exacerbates these challenges driving further the need for the LEMA initiative .

2. Consumer acceptance and a connection with local communities are seen as critical success factors validating LEMA’s ‘Consumer First’ approach. Several ways of achieving this were discussed and it was acknowledged that a combination of solutions will be required. Several of these are part of LEMA’s work plan to be addressed over this next period, starting with the next Common Interest Group Meeting on 19th November.

3. Cutting through commercial complexity and the need for simplicity to avoid “boiling the ocean” came up in almost every discussion: about consumers, energy, data, property, finance/affordability/commercial viability etc. LEMA’s approach and intention to offer simplified, repeatable solutions based on collaboration was widely recognised and applauded.

In addition, the importance of a Retrofit Pathway to run alongside new build arose several times. It was acknowledged that retrofit is the hardest nut to crack and not the place to start however, its importance does need to be recognised. The proposed pathway of new build, major/group retrofit, individual retrofit was broadly agreed but needs to be communicated more clearly.

Leading day 2 was a session comparing European and UK experiences and solutions starting with a salutary example from The Netherlands where grid strengthening is lagging the growth in demand from local LCTs and data centres. This has resulted in much of their grid being at maximum capacity preventing new industrial, commercial and residential developments. “The ghost of Christmas Future” was how one delegate described it! It certainly set the scene for the ensuing debates exploring how addressing this issue now to get ahead of the problem, could save massive disruption and higher costs in the near future. One estimate was a failure to embrace the application of local flexibility to manage loads through ‘dynamic diversity’ could lead to a fivefold increase in future costs.

Overall the Summit was a hugely successful event with all delegates commenting on its unique nature and value, resulting in several non-members now progressing LEMA membership.

The importance of making tangible progress was however emphasised…

…and the next set of working meetings are on 19th November and 17th December where our 12 development projects will be reviewed .

Non-members who are considering joining LEMA are welcome to attend to judge the value of membership, but only members can take part in LEMA’s problem solving and practical implementation projects.

See you there!

To enquire about your organisation joining the Local Energy Markets Alliance, and to participate in our Common Interest Groups and sub-projects, please get in touch with us via https://www.lema.energy/contact-us.