Council’s peer-to-peer trading cuts energy bills for SMEs in West Suffolk

Small and medium-sized enterprises at Mildenhall Industrial Park in West Suffolk have seen a significant reduction in energy bills, ranging from 20% to 90%, through peer-to-peer energy trading.

This initiative is a result of a partnership between West Suffolk Council and UrbanChain, a Manchester-based deeptech company. The council has 272 KW of solar PV installed on 10 commercial buildings and owns a 12-megawatt solar farm.

Through UrbanChain’s peer-to-peer energy exchange, the council’s renewable generators have been able to earn at least 35% more than the market offers.

UrbanChain uses AI and blockchain to match local energy production with local consumption. The company manages over 200GWh of renewable energy exchange and has more than 3.3TWh in its pipeline.

Andy Oswald, who manages West Suffolk Council’s energy generation, said:

“We identified UrbanChain in 2021 and they were exactly where we needed them to be as they had developed a peer-to-peer platform. It matchs local production with local consumption, which helps with any worries regarding barriers of grid capacity for example.

“It’s working and it has developed. It’s a great result that we are powering our own estate using UrbanChain’s peer-to-peer network. Our partners are consuming 100% locally generated renewable electricity.”

Somayeh Taheri, CEO of UrbanChain, added:

“We firmly believe that UrbanChain is the future of electricity markets. Mildenhall Industrial Estate is just one example of the multiple benefits our peer-to-peer energy exchange platform provides. Put simply, we enable reductions for energy consumers who want to meet net zero objectives by consuming 100% clean, local and traceable energy. Every energy market participant benefits.”