Ethical investment pays but take-up stays in the slow lane – Sunday Herald

SIMON BAIN

ENERGY COOPERATIVES

Edinburgh residents are being offered a new ethical investment by Edinburgh
Community Solar Co-operative. It aims to raise over £1m to fund the
installation of solar panels on all council sites – including Gylemuir
Primary School, where the project was launched with TV weather presenter
Heather Reid.

The minimum share purchase is £250, the projected return is five per cent a
year plus RPI inflation and it should also be eligible for the Enterprise
Investment Scheme, offering 30 per cent tax relief on shares held for three
years.

It aims to become the UK’s largest community-owned renewables scheme and
after two weeks has reached £73,000.
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It becomes the eighth Scottish cooperative project supported by Energy4All,
following five in the Highlands and two in Lanarkshire.

In 2013/14 the Spirit of Lanarkshire Co-op raised £2.7m from 608 investors
to buy a stake in two local wind farms.