FOI request (FOIR-721502855)

Solar Energy Usage and Future Plans

Requested Mon 09 June 2025
Responded Fri 20 June 2025

Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, I would like to request information regarding your current and planned usage of solar energy across your estate.

Please could you provide responses to the following questions:

1. Governance and Responsibility

a. Do you have a dedicated person or team responsible for solar energy investment and/or sustainability energy initiatives within your organisation?

b. If so, please provide their role/title (personal names are not required).

2. Current Solar Deployment

a. How many solar panel installations (PV systems) do you currently operate across your estate?

b. What is the total installed capacity of these systems (in kilowattpeak)?

c. What proportion of your organisation’s energy usage is currently provided by solar generation?

3. Investment and Strategy

a. Does your organisation have a documented investment strategy for expanding the use of solar panels or increasing on-site renewable energy generation?

b. If so, please provide a copy of or link to the relevant strategy or plan (or summarise key points if not published).

4. Solar and Net Zero Commitments

a. Does solar energy form part of your organisation’s Net Zero/Carbon Reduction Strategy?

b. If yes, how is progress against this strategy communicated to the public (for example, via website, reports, dashboards, and so on)?

5. Future Plans

a. Are there any planned solar panel projects or expansions within the next 3 years? If yes, please provide high-level details (for example, number of sites, scale of deployment, approximate timescales).

b. Have you conducted any feasibility studies on increasing solar capacity in the past 3 years? If so, can these be shared?

6. Procurement and Partnerships

a. Does your organisation currently use any third-party companies or frameworks to deliver solar energy solutions or manage installations? If yes, which ones?

b. Are there any upcoming procurement exercises planned relating to solar energy or wider renewable energy solutions?

7. Battery Storage

a. Do you currently use battery storage alongside your solar panels?

b. Are there plans to invest in battery storage in future?

8. Funding

a. Has your organisation accessed or applied for any external funding to support solar energy projects (for example, SALIX, Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, LEP funding)?

9. Barriers

a. What are the main barriers your organisation faces to further adoption of solar energy (for example, funding, planning restrictions, roof suitability, internal resource)?

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Response

1a. Climate Change team - Email: solar@hastings.gov.uk

1b. As above.

2a. We operate three PV systems.

2b. 110 kilowattpeak

2c. The PV systems generate approximately 10% of our electricity consumption. However, actual usage form the PV systems can only be estimated due to deemed export (circa 5% directly supplied by PV).

3a. Information not held. This is not a request for recorded information.

3b. Not applicable.

4a. Yes.

4b. All information can be viewed at:

https://www.hastings.gov.uk/my-council/climate-change/

5a. Information not held. This is not a request for recorded information.

5b. Yes, however we are unable to share for reasons set out below:

NOTICE OF REFUSAL

The information you have requested is commercially sensitive and falls under Section 43 of the Freedom of Information Act – Commercially Sensitive Information - Information prejudicing commercial interests – commercial interest relating to an organisation's commercial activity and may include trading activity procurement and relationships with third parties.

The exemption afforded by Section 43 is subject to what is known as the ‘public interest test’. When applying the test in a particular case a public authority is deciding whether the public interest is better served by non-disclosure than by disclosure.

Although the Freedom of Information Act does not define ‘in the public interest’, there is a presumption under Freedom of Information that openness is in the public interest. In applying the public interest test a public authority will take into account the distinction that has been often made by courts between things that are in the public interest, and things that merely interest the public. Where applicants have not identified public interest considerations succinctly or accurately, the public authority has a responsibility under the Act to make their own assessment of the public interest considerations in the particular case.

We have identified the following public interest factors that may be seen as encouraging the disclosure of information:

a) accountability of public spending.

We consider these factors to be of limited relevance in relation to the information in question.

Public interest factors seen as encouraging non-disclosure are, generally, the exemptions themselves. In consideration of this matter we came to the following conclusions:

a) ensuring that companies are able to compete for business fairly.

b) damage to reputation and/or financial interests.

In weighing the factors for and against disclosure we have concluded that the likely benefit to the applicant and the wider public of disclosure is outweighed by the likely prejudice caused by such disclosure and that therefore the public interest is better served by non-disclosure.

For the reasons given above we will not be communicating to you the information you have requested.

6a. Information not held. This is not a request for recorded information.

6b. Information not held. This is not a request for recorded information.

7a. Information not held. This is not a request for recorded information.

7b. Information not held. This is not a request for recorded information.

8a. We applied for the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme but we were unsuccessful.

9a. Information not held. This is not a request for recorded information.