KIRKLEES Council believes it will save thousands from a legal change.

The Government will allow local authorities to sell renewable energy to the National Grid for the first time this month.

Kirklees Council believes the change will bring in £10,000 in a year – a much-needed boost as public spending is squeezed.

A council spokesman said yesterday: “The introduction of the feed-in tariff scheme will allow Kirklees to benefit from an additional annual income on its solar sites.

“These sites include council buildings, schools and sheltered housing such as care homes.

“We are currently investigating the potential income and registering our solar sites. We estimate that the council will receive approximately £10,000 per year from our solar generating sites.”

The Government hopes the legal change, which comes into force on August 18, will allow councils across the country to earn £100m a year.

Energy secretary Chris Huhne, announcing the news, said: “At present only 0.01% of electricity in England is generated by local authority-owned renewables, despite the scope that exists to install projects on their land and buildings.

“In Germany the equivalent figure is 100 times higher.

“For too long, Whitehall’s dogmatic reliance on big energy has stood in the way of the vast potential role of local authorities in the UK’s green energy revolution.

“Forward-thinking local authorities have been quietly getting on with it, but against the odds, their efforts frustrated by the law.

“I’ve taken the early step of overturning the ban on councils selling renewable electricity to the grid. I’ve written to all councils urging them to take advantage and lead a local energy revolution.

“This is a vital step to making community renewable projects commercially viable, to bring in long-term income to benefit local areas and to secure local acceptance for low carbon energy projects.”

Councils had been banned since 1989 from selling excess renewable energy to the National Grid – a restriction to protect the newly-privatised energy industry from competition.

Kirklees says it will be able to sell solar energy from the following sites:

Civic Centre 3

The Media Centre

King James’s School, Almondbury

Lowerhouses Primary School

Moldgreen School

Castle Grange Care Home, Newsome

Moorlands Grange Care Home, Netherton

Orchard View Care Home, Mirfield

Crescent Dale Care Home, Heckmondwike

Mill Dale Care Home, Heckmondwike

Elm Grove Care Home, Heckmondwike