22.1.24

Plans for an initial twenty-three Cardiff Council buildings to benefit from an energy saving retrofit programme that would save money and reduce carbon emissions have been agreed, as the local authority continues its One Planet Cardiff work to become carbon neutral.

Green, locally sourced electricity already provides the power for council buildings wherever possible, but the 22 school buildings provisionally identified for the first round of the programme alongside Channel View Leisure Centre, still produce 1595.7 tonnes of 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 the Local Government Association, HM Treasury and the Welsh Government, will guarantee minimum 15% energy, carbon and cost savings.

The intention is that the work will 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 were approved at a Cabinet meeting on Thursday 18^thJanuary and a Re:Fit service provider will now be appointed for a four year period, with delivery of retrofit measures in the first group of buildings to take place in 2024/25. Subsequent groups will then follow over the next four years.

Further 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 copy of the Cabinet report and a webcast of the meeting at which it was discussed are available here: https://cardiff.moderngov.co.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=151&MId=8213&LLL=0