Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) and Advanced Infrastructure have completed the onboarding process with the first five local authorities who have signed up to the new innovative Local Energy Net Zero Accelerator (LENZA) planning tool.

LENZA is a geospatial planning tool powered by Advanced Infrastructure that will facilitate the co-creation of local decarbonisation pathways, with phased rollouts across all local authorities within SSEN licence areas taking place in 2023 - 2024.

LENZA provides local authorities and their delivery partners with access to up to date network capacity, building stock data, and modelling tools to support informed decision making, as well as the development of Local Area Energy Plans (LAEPs) and Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategies (LHEES).

The tool empowers local authorities to make better decisions about where to put new energy assets like EV chargers, or where to roll out low-carbon programmes.

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The launch of LENZA follows on from the successful trial of Advanced Infrastructure's LAEP+ (Local Area Energy Planner Plus) Tool by Dundee City Council, Perth and Kinross Council and Oxfordshire County Council under Project RESOP - a Network Innovation Allowance (NIA) funded project.

The pilot used the platform to optimise the deployment of EV charge points, plan heat pump rollout and plan local decarbonisation.  

In December 2023, LENZA specialists from SSEN and Advanced Infrastructure, ran initial training sessions with representatives from Wiltshire Council, Southampton City Council, Dorset Council, Perth & Kinross Council, and Dundee City Council. The dedicated team will now co-create solutions with the local authorities in SSEN’s licence areas by providing regular input, network analysis, and ‘whole system’ thinking to their energy planning.

The project seeks to reduce the time and cost associated with local Net Zero planning and improve the Distribution Network Operator’s visibility of future network connections.

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Councillor Ray Bryan, Dorset Council’s Portfolio Holder for Highways, Travel and Environment, said:

‍"We are delighted to be involved in using SSEN's new tool. It is already apparent this will be a real game changer for Dorset's journey to becoming a carbon-neutral county.

"Whether making plans for renewables, designing low-carbon heat projects, or seeking funding for EV chargers, it is an unrivalled source of data and insight. It’s also an excellent example of network operators and local authorities working together on plans to decarbonise local energy and reach net zero.”

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Barbara Whiting, Sustainability and Climate Change Manager for Dundee City Council, said:

“The City of Dundee is delighted to continue our partnership with SSEN by being one of the first local authorities to go through training for the LENZA tool.

“It will provide us with a ‘whole systems’ overview of the energy networks in our city, as well as crucial data and insights that will underpin our new Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy.”

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‍_{Request a FREE DEMO of LAEP+}

If you're interested in learning more about how LAEP+ can support you and your teams in identifying, accelerating and significantly reducing the costs associated with Local Area Energy Planning or Low Carbon Technology deployment, you can now request a FREE DEMO here.

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