Lux Nova appointed as key member of HNIP consortium

Lux Nova are a key member of the team managing delivery of what is currently the Government’s biggest single energy programme. We are appointed as gatekeeper to £320m of Government funds and given the role of encouraging and assessing applications for, and awarding and managing, grants and for low rate, long-term loans for heat network projects, from public and private sector applicants.

The objective of the HNIP programme is to help stimulate a sustainable market for investment into low carbon heat networks, leveraging in up to £1billion of private funds.  The consortium is being led by our new client, Triple Point Investment Management (TP). Together with Amberside Infrastructure, they lead on inward investment and fund management. We (Lux Nova) add to the consortium our extensive legal and commercial knowledge of heat network projects.  We’re working alongside other sector experts, AECOM (heat network design and costing) and BDO (heat business financial models), as well as Ecuity (stakeholder engagement) and Gemserve (Government energy programme operation). 

Our role involves legal input into applicant guidance, application assessment, funding agreements, management of finance CPs and grant/loan management, developing standardised industry documentation and third party investor due diligence. Key in BEIS’ choice was our offer of promoting best practice and new / more effective approaches to project development.

For more information, click here.

See also our press release here.

Energetik District Heating Scheme

Since 2015, Lux Nova has been providing end-to-end legal support for the ground-breaking, local authority driven, energetik DH project, drafting and negotiating the full suite of documentation required for project development, from customer heat agreements through to connection, adoption, construction and operation agreements, bringing to bear our experience on numerous projects across the UK.

As part of the broader energetik offering, Lux Nova has also drafted a bespoke private wire electricity supply agreement for the use of electricity generated by CHP engines on developments by commercial customers and we have also provided in-depth advice on external debt funding, produced a suite of agreements to address state aid affected funds, and local authority governance. 

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The energetik scheme is an ambitious, city-scale project which will provide heating and hot water to thousands of homes in North London, with the potential to provide electricity in the future. The Enfield Council-owned heat company, energtik, has a clear purpose: a mission to provide better value energy that is reliable and low carbon and to revolutionise the local energy market with an aim to become the “local supplier to trust.”

The scheme will see low carbon waste heat utilised from the Edmonton EcoPark as well as other potential heat sources and traditional CHP and boiler units, and a close integration of the scheme with Enfield Council’s regeneration and economic development strategies. 

The scheme has been part funded by the European Investment Bank, through the London Energy Efficiency Fund, has benefited from the European Regional Development Fund and has the backing of the Mayor of London.

Lux Nova Partners has provided an integral role to the development of what is to-date, the largest proposed new district heating scheme in the UK (and one of the most complex). Appointed at the outset of the main stage of project development, other than in relation to property advice, we have provided the full suite of advice required for the scheme, supporting the client through all stages of the project’s development. We continue to provide key support on each phase role out of the scheme, negotiating the plot connection, asset adoption and framework supply agreements with each new Developer being served by energetik. 

Our work on the energetik project was awarded at the annual ADE Awards ceremony 2018, with Tom and Sandy winning the Consultancy of the Year award.

Lendlease’s distributed energy counsel

Lux Nova have acted on a number of Lendlease’s district heating schemes, serving their new build developments. Their go-to lawyers for all distributed energy related issues, we have advised on the Elephant & Castle scheme in South London, the Timberyard scheme in Deptford and on a new (confidential) scheme in North London.

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The largest of their district heating schemes, Elephant & Castle, saw E.ON engaged under a Concession arrangement to install, operate and maintain a district heating scheme to serve the Elephant Park regeneration area. An innovative structure sees bio-gas offsets used to lower the carbon content of heat provided with the low carbon, low cost heat due to serve almost 3,000 homes.

We advised Lendlease as master developer, on the drafting of the full suite of contracts associated with the grant of the Concession to E.ON. From project inception, we advised on how best the client could achieve its aggressive timetable and delivered value to the client through the transferability of our experience working with the client and opposite the energy supplier on other projects, familiarity with the negotiating team and our stake in the documentation in use.  From our engagement in earnest, this project made record progress for a scheme of this size and complexity, closing in just under 9 months during 2014.

We now have an on-going role, advising on each plot connection agreement, connecting the building infrastructure to the main district heating spine, as plots in the regeneration area are developed out in sequence, together with adhoc advice on contract management as the Concession progresses. We have also moved on to assist Lend Lease with their low carbon communal heating scheme at their Timberyard development in Deptford.