01 Aug 2019
Clean and green for council
Island council
buildings will be powered on 100 per cent renewable electricity from 1 October after
the council chose to sign up to a new green provider called Ecotricity.
The
contract was awarded following an Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU)
compliant tendering process for the purchase of future energy.
Isle
of Wight Council Leader, Councillor Dave Stewart, said: “I am very pleased to
be able to announce that Ecotricity have been chosen by the Isle of Wight
Council as its electricity provider
reflecting our drive towards our green agenda and helping contribute to our
aspiration of carbon neutrality . The company could demonstrate they generate and
supply 100 per cent renewable energy sourced from the wind and sun and at the
same time as offering value for money.
“Following
the Full Council meeting where a climate emergency was declared and the recent
news that the Island has been awarded biosphere status, I think it is important that we make changes where and when
we can. I believe in action not just words and this clearly demonstrated we are
taking action. This contract will ensure
all the electricity used in our buildings is green electricity and help
minimise our carbon footprint.”
The
contract will cover all council buildings, including fire stations, care homes,
offices and leisure centres.
The
company Ecotricity provides electricity from 100 per cent green sources, with
around a quarter coming from their 47 ‘wind parks’ and five ‘sun parks’ that
are currently operating or have been approved for use across the country.
The
energy generated from the wind and sun doesn’t release any carbon emissions –
so helps reduce the impact the council buildings have on the environment.
Paul
Sands, Growth Director, Ecotricity, added: “We’re proud to be powering these
council buildings on the Isle of Wight. We’re in the midst of a climate
emergency – and one of the things we can all do is switching to a renewable
energy supplier – as power can be one of the largest impacts we have on the
planet. We’re supplying a growing number of businesses and homes with renewable
power.”
The
contract is for the supply of electricity will run from 1 October 2019 through to
30 September 2020.
For
more information on Ecotricity, please visit: www.ecotricity.co.uk
BIOSPHERE
The
Isle of Wight (including the waters around the Island) is now a UNESCO
Biosphere Reserve. The award was made by the United Nations Man and Biosphere
Co-ordinating Council in Paris on the 19th June 2019.
To
become a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, a region needs to show that people and the
natural environment are coexisting harmoniously.
OJEU
Official
Journal of the European Union (OJEU) is the online journal that is home to all
public sector contracts that are worth above a certain value. If a public
authority contract is above certain contract value (above the threshold), EC
Procurement Regulations require that the contract has to be awarded using an
EU/OJEU compliant route to market.
Factfile
- Island council buildings will be powered on 100 per renewable electricity from 1 October 2019.
- The contract was awarded following an Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) compliant tendering process for the purchase of future energy.