15.1.24

Plans for an initial twenty-three Cardiff Council buildings to benefit from a £1.8 million energy saving retrofit programme that would save money and reduce carbon emissions have been revealed, as the local authority continues it's One Planet Cardiff work to become carbon neutral.

Green, locally sourced electricity already provides the power for council buildings wherever possible, but the twenty-two school buildings provisionally identified for the first round of the programme alongside Channel View Leisure Centre, still produce 1595.7 tonnes CO₂e annually, at a cost of more than £1.1million for 7.7million kWh of energy.

The Re:Fit programme which is managed and run via Local Partnerships (LP), a joint venture between Local Government Association, HM Treasury and the Welsh Government, would guarantee minimum 15% energy, carbon and cost savings.

The intention is that the work would be financed by the SALIX managed ‘Wales Funding Programme,' which allows public sector bodies to apply for flexible interest-free loans for energy-saving projects.

Cabinet Member for Investment and Development, Cllr Russell Goodway, said: "The Re:Fit programme offers an opportunity for us to reduce costs, save energy and continue the good work that has contributed to a 12.3% reduction in carbon emissions from the Council's estate since launching our One Planet Cardiff response to the climate emergency."

The plans are due to be discussed at a Cabinet meeting on Thursday 18^thJanuary and, if approved, a Re:Fit service provider would be appointed for a four year period, with delivery of retrofit measures in the first tranche of buildings to take place in 2024/25. Subsequent tranches will then follow over the next four years.

Further tranches of buildings that would benefit from investment in retrofit measures will be identified for delivery during the remainder of the contract, in order to help achieve the ambitious target, set out in the Council's One Planet Cardiff strategy, of a 60% reduction in carbon emissions from the Council's operational and schools estate by 2030.

Previous version of the Re:Fit scheme have already seen 19 schools benefit from more than £3million of investment in a range of energy conservation measures, including solar PV, building management systems, direct hot water passive infrared sensors (PIRS), fridge freezer motor controls, LED lighting upgrades, valve jackets and tea boiler PIRS.

This investment has resulted in:

• Energy savings of c.3.87million kWh per year.
• Carbon savings of c.1,123 tonnes/CO₂e per year.
• Cost savings of c. £328,000 per year.

A report, seeking approval for the development and delivery approach for the Re:Fit 4 programme is due to be discussed at a Cabinet meeting on Thursday 18^thJanuary 2024.Papers for the meeting, and a live webcast on the day, are available here: https://cardiff.moderngov.co.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=151&MId=8213&LLL=0