UK: Transport for London has called tenders for the development of purpose-built solar photovoltaic farms to generate zero-carbon electricity for the London Underground network.
‘Private wire’ agreements would see the solar electricity produced near the network, bypassing the National Grid’s centralised sources and Distribution Network Operators. A renewable four-year framework agreement is envisaged for planning, with power purchase agreements for around 25 years.
TfL is the largest single electricity consumer in London at 1·6 TWh/year. It envisages that solar farms could provide up to 64 MW to meet around 5% of the Underground’s needs, supporting its wider ambition to use 100% renewable electricity across TfL’s operations by 2030.
‘By opening up new opportunities in the energy market and creating green jobs along the way, this is a start of a long-term journey to decarbonise London’s iconic transport system’, said TfL’s Chief Safety, Health & Environment Officer Lilli Matson on October 31. ‘We want to stay ahead of the curve and make a significant contribution to the acceleration of Great Britain’s grid transition towards net zero.’
- TfL said work to procure power purchase agreements to meet a significant proportion of its electricity requirements from renewable energy sources via the grid ‘is well underway’. An initial procurement launched in 2022 proved unsuccessful.
