London City Pledges Sourcing 100% of Electricity from Renewables

The historic financial district in the City of London, the Square Miles is said to have announced to shift to clean energy by October 2018, sourcing 100% of its electricity from renewable energy sources.

The governing body of the city plans to install solar panels on local buildings and government-owned buildings, and also invest in larger solar and wind projects. It is reported that the plans of solar installations would cover 11,000 acres of green space, social housing in six London boroughs, as well as several markets and academies, and include the purchase of clean energy from the grid.

In this context, the Chairman of the corporation’s policy and resources committee, Catherine McGuinness said that this was a big step for the City Corporation and that it demonstrated their commitment towards doing socially and environmentally responsible business. She added that sourcing 100% renewable energy would make them cleaner and greener, and also reduce their grid reliance. The new commitment would reportedly see the body add to its existing renewable portfolio. And, according to sources it already uses clean energy at Parliament Hill Lido on Hampstead Heath and at the Warren in the Epping Forest.

Meanwhile, the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, pledged to make the capital a zero-carbon city by 2050, with renewables playing a crucial role. And, it is stated that over the coming decade, Khan hoped to increase the solar capacity of London by 20 times, and reach 2 GW by 2050. These initiatives are a part of a wider Energy for Londoners programme, which would reportedly invest around £34 million to make workplaces and homes across the capital cleaner and more energy efficient.

(https://www.london.gov.uk/press-releases/mayoral/london-environment-strategy-sets-out-vision)

The city also hopes to fulfil its energy-related pledges made in the Paris agreement. Meanwhile, the corporate demand for renewables is expected to grow due to falling technology costs. And, the move from the City Corporation comes as a report from International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) highlighted that corporate had sourced renewable energy equivalent to the overall demand of France.

(https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/blog/2016/10/paris-climate-agreement-to-enter-into-force-on-4-november/)