Oxfordshire Energy Strategy

The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy sets out an ambitious framework to enable the county to be at the forefront of energy innovation to foster clean growth.

Clean energy offers communities and businesses real opportunity in Oxfordshire and the UK. The low-carbon economy has the potential to grow by 11 per cent, per year over the next decade to 2030, four times faster than the projected growth of the UK economy.

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The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy will demonstrate to the UK how we can consume energy more efficiently and harness it for future generations.

The strategy can also provide the building blocks for a stand-out, low-carbon sector. It already makes a significant contribution to Oxfordshire’s economy, generating £1.15bn a year (seven per cent of Oxfordshire’s GVA). The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy can help to spearhead a further £1.35bn annually to the local economy, creating over 11,000 new jobs by 2030.

In doing so, it would also mean the county will deliver emissions reduction targets in-line with local and national expectations, meaning the strategy will play a key part in addressing climate change too.

How is Oxfordshire getting on the front foot to deliver clean energy?

The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy is underpinned by three guiding principles:

To secure a smart, modern, clean energy infrastructure.
Led by the strategy’s vision, a modern infrastructure will include increased electricity grid capacity – supporting planned housing, industrial and commercial growth – and our changing energy requirements.

To reduce countywide emissions by 50% by 2030 (compared with 2008 levels) and set a pathway to achieve zero carbon growth by 2050.
We will realise the economic benefits of a low-carbon transition by supporting:

• Ambitious and innovative, clean generation projects across the county, both in urban and rural areas, as well as growth locations.
• Projects that reduce energy demand and increase energy efficiency for domestic, industrial, commercial buildings and transport.

To enhance energy networking and partnership working.
The strategy will focus on galvanising pioneers in clean growth, leading influencers and thinkers and those with a passion for low carbon initiatives across Oxfordshire to leverage their collective activities to support the scaling-up of future solutions and accelerate delivery towards a net zero-carbon county.

How will the Oxfordshire Energy Strategy make a difference to our communities and businesses?

The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy responds to the Government’s ‘clean growth’ grand challenge.
The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy recognises the major opportunities and need to move to cleaner economic growth through low-carbon technologies and the efficient use of resources.

Oxfordshire champions and welcomes ‘world-class’ innovation in clean growth, backing sustainability in the process.
The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy will build on the county’s commitment to embrace innovation, placing it as a pioneer in modern energy and clean growth technologies.

The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy plays an integral role in supporting the county’s Local Industrial Strategy to meet its ambition.
The ambition for the Oxfordshire Energy Strategy aligns with the overall vision of the Oxfordshire Local Industrial Strategy, positioning the county as a top-three global innovation ecosystem by 2040.

The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy recognises and prioritises local need.
The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy can provide the framework to harness innovation and technology, created to benefit businesses and communities in the county and supporting a better understanding of a cultural change to local energy.

The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy provides a clear opportunity for collaboration and partnership working.
The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy seeks to harness, leverage and scale-up low carbon initiatives to have a more significant impact – not just locally – but nationally and internationally too.

Oxfordshire has one of the best-performing economies in the UK – the Oxfordshire Energy Strategy can make it even stronger.
The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy can create employment opportunities for people locally, as well as supporting greater access to new markets for businesses.

The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy will provide a platform to bring top-class skills for a zero-carbon future.
The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy can help to inspire young people and create career pathways in the low-carbon sector, as well as enhancing entrepreneurial attitudes.

The Oxfordshire Energy Strategy endorses the need for modern, clean and properly-planned growth.
By driving forward a committed and ambitious low-carbon agenda, we can achieve the planned increase in housing and employment, whilst meeting the county’s commitment to reducing carbon emissions in-line with national targets.

Contact us to find out more on the Oxfordshire Energy Strategy

The Greater South East Energy Hub

The Greater South East Energy Hub is one of five regional Energy Hubs in England. The Energy Hubs aim to provide support to bring investment into local, low-carbon energy infrastructure projects and to make strategic links between local institutions.

The Energy Hub works on behalf of Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) and their member Local Authorities. There are 11 LEPs in the Greater South East (including OxLEP). Each LEP has produced a Local Energy Strategy that informs the work of the Energy Hub.

Working in collaboration with the Local Enterprise Partnerships, the core areas of work for the Energy Hub include:

• Identifying local energy projects in the region and any barriers to project development. 
• Increasing the number, quality and scale of local, low-carbon energy projects being delivered across the area.
• Sharing information, assisting collaboration and expanding the scale of projects.
• Raising local awareness of the opportunity for, and benefits of, local energy investment.
• Enabling local areas to attract private and/or public finance.

The Energy Hub team will work with stakeholders to develop a regional pipeline of priority projects. The team will also address common barriers to project development and so improve the conditions for local energy projects to be successful.

If you would like further details, or have project information to share, please get in touch with the Energy Hub via: [email protected]