Last month, REA presented the 18th year of the prestigious British Renewable Energy Awards (BREAs) at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House hotel. We had the pleasure of hosting over 250 guests on the night and celebrating the best companies, projects and individuals that deserved recognition for their hard work and are leading the way in renewable energy and clean technology. There are so many developments in this ever-changing industry, and we look forward to seeing more brilliant work from those pushing for net zero next year!

Here are the reflections from some of our winners on receiving their awards this year, what it means to them and the exciting projects we can expect from them in the future:

Low Carbon Hub – Community Award Winner

“We are delighted to have won this award, as a recognition of the incredible passion and commitment of the people and organisations we work with across Oxfordshire to accelerate the transition to a zero carbon energy system.  Through collaboration, innovation, and sheer gritted determination we believe it is possible to meet our energy needs in a way that’s good for people and good for the planet –  and that communities have a key role to play in that transition.

The energy system is changing: The way we power our homes and transport, the way we generate and store energy, and the way we need to interact with the energy system in a more flexible way. Communities can play a key role in getting people in our communities and government together to make these changes happen. 

We firmly believe that forging strong partnerships across the energy system – from communities to local authorities, DNOs to commercial actors – will be our best chance of getting the scale of change and participation that we need.  Our Project LEO energy trials demonstrated just what can be achieved when communities, DNOs, local authorities and energy experts work together to help solve the biggest challenge humanity has faced. Low Carbon Hub is looking forward to working with people from across the energy system to continue to pioneer new approaches and build generative partnerships.”

Solar Group Utilities – Company Award Winner

“Wow, just wow!”, was the reaction from Darren Lewis Solar Group Utilities MD. “This award came as an absolute surprise.  It really is a testament to the dedication of our fabulous team; I really do believe we owe everything to them; they say it is hard to find a team who cares, well guess what ours does!

“A special mention to our families who have sacrificed so much to allow Stuart and myself to follow our dreams. We cannot put into words our gratitude for the support of colleagues near and far, without mentioning names, as there are so many, you all know who you are, the special people who have touched our lives within this industry, paved the way for us to excel, we are and forever will be grateful.

“What’s next you ask? If I may be as modest to say, we will grow, we will succeed and we will become the UK’s No 1 Operations & Maintenance provider.

“We will never sit still, we will always think outside the box, collaborating with our clients to ensure our continued knowledge growth and support towards a greener future.

Using one of our Motos ‘their world, their way’ after all our children are tomorrow’s people.”

PPAYA – Financial Leadership Award Winner

Kristina Rabecaite, CEO of PPAYA, is “shocked” that PPAYA was not only nominated but also won an award this year. She tells her thoughts on what it means to be celebrating this award in a busy world in the video below:

3ti – Innovation Award Winner

“3ti Energy Hubs were delighted to win the British REA Award for Innovation for our Papilio3 mini solar car park and EV charging hub.  Being recognised by the UK’s largest renewable energy and clean technology body, with over 550 members was a very proud moment for our business. The innovation, initiative and dynamism demonstrated by fellow nominees and the ground-breaking PhD research recognised by the Future Game Changers Award is a clear statement of our industry’s drive towards net zero. Many thanks to REA and the judges for a fantastic event and congratulations to all those who were nominated, shortlisted, and awarded.”

Oxon Energy Ltd. – Installer Award Winner

“We’re thrilled to accept the Installer award for 2023. We hope our success will encourage more plumbers, electricians and heating engineers to make the leap to renewables. Small firms like ours, across the UK, are doing fantastic work in moving our country away from fossil fuels – we’re the future! At least we are if we want to have one.”

ubitricity – Low Carbon Transport Award Winner

“We are thrilled and honoured to receive the prestigious award for Best Low Carbon Transport Project at the Renewable Energy Awards. This recognition is a testament to the hard work, dedication, and innovation of the entire ubitricity team.

At ubitricity, we believe that the transition to electric vehicles is a vital step towards making our cities a better place to live. Our innovative approach of integrating smart charging technology with existing infrastructure has proven to be a game-changer in the industry. By transforming lampposts and other street furniture into electric vehicle charging points, we have made EV charging more accessible and convenient for everyone.

As we celebrate this remarkable achievement, we are also looking forward to the future. Our organization is dedicated to further expanding our charging infrastructure network. We will continue to collaborate with local authorities to bring affordable and sustainable charging solutions to more communities across the UK.

We encourage readers and fellow members to keep an eye out for our upcoming projects and partnerships. We have some exciting initiatives in the pipeline. Winning this award validates our mission to revolutionize the way we think about sustainable transportation and reaffirms our commitment to a greener future. Thank you for your continued support on this remarkable journey.”

Biomass Connect – Pioneer Award Winner

“Biomass Connect’s work so far has played a vital role in promoting biomass crop production and research, with the goal of reducing UK carbon emissions. This award specifically reflects the Platform’s commitment to knowledge sharing and collaboration to support the biomass sector.”

Henry Payne, Biomass Connect Project Manager, said about this award: “We are absolutely thrilled to receive this Pioneer Award. It is a great honour to be recognised for the work we have done in promoting biomass crop production, as part of the UK drive towards Net Zero. We are passionate about the advancement of biomass crop technologies and their role in both reducing carbon emissions and promoting a greener world.”

SAS ENERGY – Project Award Winner

“We are truly thrilled, that SAS ENERGY’s hard work was recognized by a board of industry experts winning REA’s prestigious award in the category – Project.

This achievement would not have been possible without the unwavering commitment of our remarkable team. Last year, we successfully completed several major undertakings, but none quite as impactful as our multi-solar energy project for Gateshead Council. Our team managed to install four solar PV solutions at four distinct sites, including a rooftop, carpark, and two brownfields, generating a total of 4.3MW of clean and sustainable energy. Our commitment to outstanding work has earned us repeat business and long-lasting relationships with our clients at SAS ENERGY.”

SAS ENERGY’s MD, Nick Porter said: ”Gateshead is one of the most progressive councils when it comes to supporting and investing in green technologies. SAS ENERGY is proud to have delivered the multi-solar energy solution to help in their energy efficiency initiative. This has created a blueprint for both private and public organizations to utilize the unexploited potential and help develop sustainable infrastructure, which can lead to future development opportunities and ways to reach Net Zero targets faster.”

Eco Sustainable Solutions – Sustainability Award Winner

Justin Dampney, MD of Eco Sustainable Solutions said: “The BREA’s have become such a prestigious event over the years. So, to be recognised with a nomination and subsequently presented with the Sustainability Award, was such an honour for everyone at Eco.

The 50 strong team at Eco work incredibly hard to ensure that we’re able to offer Sustainable Waste Management and Renewable Energy solutions for our variety of customers.  We go the extra mile to investigate and implement always more sustainable solutions, and to ensure that our service offerings and the impact of our operations are as light on the environment as they possibly can be.

Next up, we’ll be developing our second Anaerobic Digestor facility at our Eco Park. Converting local authority food waste into carbon negative biogas, which will be both fed into the gas grid as well as used to decarbonise our fleet of HGV’s.”

Amna Bezanty – Young Renewable Energy Professional Award Winner

“I am absolutely thrilled to have won the Young Renewable Energy Professional award at the British Renewable Energy Awards in London. It was a fabulous evening and I felt honoured to be amongst some incredible talent in the room who are all contributing in their own unique way to providing a net zero future.

I would like to thank my wonderful colleagues at KEW Technology who believe in me and have supported my renewable energy career journey from day one as well as our fabulous partners and investors that I work closely with to deliver a world beyond fossil fuels. With their support, I was in the privileged position to accept this award.

I was fortunate enough to start working in the renewable energy industry straight out of university and I’ve just celebrated 5 years at KEW!

Looking forward, we have lots of exciting projects to deliver alongside our fantastic partnerships. Our joint-venture partnership, Circular Fuels Ltd, is progressing towards financial close of our first project which will deliver a low-carbon substitute for over 5% of UK LPG demand. We also continue to attract government funding that will demonstrate end-to-end waste/biomass-to-advanced molecules at our existing commercial-scale advanced gasification facility.”