Acting now to ensure Scotland’s communities benefit from the renewables boom
Scotland’s transition to renewable energy presents a major opportunity; not just for net zero, but for communities across the country to share in the value being created.
New research suggests that communities could benefit by more than £500 million each year if action is taken now to establish a Scottish Community Wealth Fund.
The feasibility study, carried out by independent economic think tank Centre for Local Economic Strategies (CLES), highlights both the scale of the opportunity and the need for early, coordinated action from government, industry and communities.
While the report notes some uncertainty - particularly around available data and industry concerns about investment impacts - it finds strong potential for a well-designed fund to deliver lasting benefits.
As the research concludes: “… a Scottish Community Wealth Fund would be bold, transformative and internationally unique” and it would put “communities at the heart of a national wealth funding model.”
Hundreds of millions generated per year
The report focuses primarily on wind energy, reflecting the rapid expansion of both onshore and offshore developments. However, it also anticipates that other renewable sectors could contribute over time.
Based on proposals from the Scottish Community Coalition on Energy, the research suggests that contributions to a Scottish Community Wealth Fund could exceed £500 million annually by 2035.
At the same time, the report is clear that further work is needed to refine these estimates and better understand what contributions are realistic across the sector.
It highlights a lack of publicly available data on key factors such as development costs, acceptable rates of return and profit margins. As it notes: “Five percent of project revenue to be split between local benefit funds and Scottish Community Wealth Fund payments may not be feasible, but increased benefit payments may be more viable. Greater transparency of data is needed.”
More broadly, the report raises important questions about fairness and long-term value about “who profits from our natural resources, where should it go and who should it benefit.”
Turning potential into reality: Next steps for community wealth
The report calls for clear leadership from the Scottish Government, including early-stage funding and a supportive policy framework to encourage contributions. It also emphasises the need for collaboration across sectors to shape how the fund would work in practice.
Crucially, communities themselves will need to play a central role in designing the fund and how it delivers impact.
Key next steps identified in the report include:
- Further research into financial models and sector realities
- More detailed exploration of how communities can benefit
- Establishing a cross-sector steering group to guide development, governance and strategy
- Building political consensus around the need for a Scottish Community Wealth Fund
“We have been developing and advocating for a Wealth Fund for several years, to ensure that communities across Scotland benefit properly from the exploitation of our natural resources. Almost everyone agrees that the significant profits which renewable energy generation and transmission will create should benefit local people, and there is a huge opportunity to build a lasting legacy for all of Scotland’s communities. The new CLES report suggests the time for talking is over and the time for urgent targeted action is now. We know that significant revenues and profits are being created, and we know that developers and government need to ensure Scotland’s communities and economy is benefitting into the future. Now is the time for transparency, collaborative planning and political support to turn this strong concept into a transformational reality.”
“Foundation Scotland has long seen the value that well-designed community benefit can bring, but we also recognise the current system can feel inconsistent and, at times, inequitable from the perspective of different communities. This report, that we were very pleased to help fund, is an important contribution to a more open and constructive conversation about addressing that inequity in a fairer, more strategic way. A Scottish Community Wealth Fund has real potential to create a lasting national legacy from our renewable resources, provided it is developed carefully, with input from communities, industry and government alike. Building confidence across all parties will be critical, particularly in ensuring that any new approach complements existing and other emerging arrangements. To succeed, the Fund will need to be meaningfully capitalised from the outset. With the right design and commitment, a Wealth Fund can finally help ensure a more coherent, sustainable and equitable system where more of Scotland’s assets generate lasting value for all its communities.”
“If Scotland gets this right, a Community Wealth Fund could reshape how economic value is shared, placing communities at the centre of the nation’s renewable future.”
You can read the full report here