Glasgow City Council Leader speaks at All-Energy of innovative low carbon future for city

Speaking at the opening of All-Energy, the UK’s largest event for the energy sector, leader of Glasgow City Council, Councillor Gordon Matheson CBE, outlined the City’s plans for growth and sustainability.

As part of the City’s ‘Energy and Carbon Master Plan’, Matheson spoke of carbon reduction projects through a variety of initiatives such as a new recycling and renewable energy centre. The centre, which is due to open next year, will reduce landfill by 90 per cent and reduce costs by £250m, while recovering enough energy to power 22,000 homes. 

He also highlighted another initiative, the Glasgow Street Lighting Project. Describing it as a first of its kind in the UK, it will see 10,000 street lanterns replaced with low energy versions along main arterial roads leading into the city.  The Street Lighting project utilised the UK Green Investment Bank’s specially designed Green Loan to finance the switch to the low-energy lighting solution.  A Shepherd and Wedderburn team of lawyers, led by partner Clare Foster, worked with the bank to document the Green Loan product and advised it in connection with the provision of the Green Loan to Glasgow City Council. Foster said:

" We were delighted to work with the Green Investment Bank  team and are so pleased to see the first deployment of the Green Loan with Glasgow City Council.  By using the "spend to save" model, the Green Loan not only provides a flexible financing option for local authorities across the UK but also provides a powerful tool to facilitate energy efficiency measures."

All Energy-delegates can learn more about the Green Loan and other innovative funding solutions when Clare chairs Acceleration of energy efficiency in Scotland and funding innovations on the second day of the conference (1.30pm 7 May).