Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high - risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. Take 2 mins to learn more

Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high - risk investment and you are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. Take 2 mins to learn more

Yealm Community Energy

Renewable Energy - Community Shares

56% raised
6%

Forecast
return

Investors
142
Hours left
0
Raised so far
£483,323

Yealm Community Energy (YCE) is an established community benefit society dedicated to generating clean energy that benefits the community. They are raising funds to buy 3 solar farms that can power the equivalent of 4,450 homes, carbon-free.


Target
£860,000
Min raise
£300,000
Offer opened
31/07/2023
Closing date
10/11/2023
cycling race illustration

Yealm Community Energy
Society no. 7173
Devon, UK
Incorporation date: 16 July 2015

Your money will…

  • Tackle climate change locally by supporting YCE’s continued generation of solar energy, cutting carbon emissions.

  • Help Yealm Community Energy improve wildlife and biodiversity in the local area through nature-sensitive environmental projects.

  • Support vital local community initiatives delivering positive environmental and social impact through the Community Benefit Fund.

  • Earn a potential financial return. Investments target an annual return of 6% and investors become members of the community benefit society.

The bigger picture

Yealm Community Energy (YCE) was formed in 2015 and consists of a group of people local to South Devon who want to bring local renewable energy assets into community ownership, so they can continue to provide benefits for the entire community - and the planet. YCE is raising funds to purchase three fully operational solar farms which:

  • have an installed capacity of 12.28 MW, generating 13M kWh/year
  • are capable of powering the equivalent of 4,450 homes, carbon-free
  • have power purchase agreements in place to supply energy to the National Grid
  • are expected to generate excess revenue of around £8 million over the project’s lifetime that YCE will channel back into community benefit initiatives.

  • YCE is part of Community Energy Together, a collaboration of five community benefit societies and seven solar farm assets which have been cross-collaterally financed. A community benefit society is purchasing each solar farm, increasing the capacity of community-owned solar energy in England and Wales by about 20%.


What your money will do

It’s your money, so you want to know where it goes and what kind of impact you’re making. Your investment in Yealm Community Energy will:

  • Enable this extraordinary community energy organisation to continue to fund social and environmental initiatives, delivering benefits for the local community
  • Ensure the three solar farms continue to operate and are brought into community ownership, reducing the impact of climate change and contributing to energy security through this and other local energy initiatives
  • Empower local people and organisations to take control of their energy generation by creating 100% community-owned renewable energy, and
  • Support South Devon’s transition to a low-carbon future while supporting wildlife and biodiversity in the local area.

Team

Yealm Community Energy is determined to build on this successful model and this share offer will help them fund the next phase of their work. https://www.yealmenergy.co.uk/

Peter M Brown

Chair

Peter is a retired NHS Consultant, a role in which he became very aware of the health consequences of climate change. After moving  to Devon in 2005, he set up an educational environment group, which soon expanded into projects, encouraging local people to increase the energy efficiency of their houses and to install renewable energy systems. As chair of YCE, Peter brings the necessary drive and enthusiasm to encourage volunteers to give up their valuable time for the common good and zero carbon.


Ray Holland

Director

Ray is a chartered electrical engineer, trained at the Royal Naval Engineering College, Manadon, Plymouth. He has spent the last 30 years managing renewable energy projects and energy policy programmes in Africa, Asia and Latin America, including managing a small consulting firm, and an EU programme that set up the Africa-EU Renewable Energy Cooperation Programme (now GET.Invest). Much of this work involved local communities owning their own electricity supplies, so he is keen to apply lessons from this experience in his own community in South Devon. 


Dominic Crawley

Director

Dominic brings extensive banking and risk evaluation knowledge and experience to the Yealm board. He had a 40-year career in financial and capital markets, including 20 years in banking and subsequently 20 years with S&P Global Ratings, where he was an executive managing director and head of Global Rating Services. Dominic joined the board for Yealm as he saw the opportunity to share his knowledge and skills and contribute to making the opportunity to acquire three local solar farms become a reality, thereby securing a lasting endowment to the local communities where he and his wife have now made their home. Dominic lives in Newton Ferrers.


Tony Roper

Director

Tony has nearly 30 years’ experience of making and managing infrastructure investments. Between 2006 and 2017, Tony was responsible for two listed infrastructure funds, financing and making investments in a wide range of infrastructure assets including solar PV. He joined YCE to to help with the financing and purchase of the solar farms for the local communities, including Newton Ferrers where he and his wife have a home.

Stephen Brown

Director

Stephen has recently retired after a career in trading seafood. Based in London and with offices in Europe and the USA, Stephen ran a seafood company trading in frozen seafood mainly from the Far East to Europe, USA and Central and South America. He has also been involved with Seafish in the UK and SIPA in Europe working on technical and regulation aspects of the seafood trade. Stephen is a resident of Holbeton. 


Tracy Ebbrell

Consultant Operations Manager

Tracy has an extensive career background covering banking, aviation, project management, environmental conservation, charitable funding and marketing, and, as such, was the ideal choice with the broad skills base needed for the operations manager role at YCE. Tracy lives in Holbeton with her family. 


Team Member Name 7

Team Member Position 7

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud. 7

Team Member Name 8

Team Member Position 8

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud. 8

Team Member Name 9

Team Member Position 9

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud. 9

Team Member Name 10

Team Member Position 10

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud. 10

Team Member Name 11

Team Member Position 11

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud. 11

Team Member Name 12

Team Member Position 12

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud. 12

Interest accrual and payment

Interest payments will be agreed at our first AGM (Annual General Meeting), which we expect to hold in the early summer of 2024, and will be released after this.

Getting your money out

Shares are not transferable and withdrawing of share capital is subject to agreement by the YCE board. Shares cannot be withdrawn in the first five years except in case of death or exceptional circumstances. Withdrawal requests will be dealt with on a first come, first served basis by the directors.

Investing on behalf of children

Applicants must be 18 years old or more to participate in this offer.

Investments can be made on behalf of children at the end of the Ethex order process. 

Interested in Renewable Energy investments?

Get notified via email when new investments go live