A South Kesteven District Council's (SKDC) initiative to save energy and reduce costs through LED lighting has hit a stumbling block after escalating energy costs outpaced savings.

The report, due to be presented to the Finance and Economic Overview and Scrutiny Committee next Thursday, outlines the financial implications of upgrading the district's streetlights to energy-efficient LED units.

According to the report, the transition to LED lighting was initially expected to result in significant energy savings.

However, the sharp increase in energy costs has effectively nullified these savings.

SKDC, like many other organisations, has seen a substantial rise in utility costs.

The electricity budget for street lighting for 2022/23 was set at £171k, but the total spend for the same period was £221k.

Council are considering removing or limiting the useage time of the street lights. Image credit: Nub News.

"Therefore, the original expectations of reinvesting savings from reduced electricity use can no longer be met, as the increased cost of energy has outpaced the savings made through reduction," said the report.

As a result of the sharp escalation in energy costs, the business case for an accelerated programme of upgrades to LED across the whole stock of streetlights has become stronger.

However, the report added: "Currently there is no agreed standalone budget for upgrading the streetlights to LED, beyond an existing fund for reactive maintenance of broken lights."

The report presents several options for the upgrade, including accelerating the programme to upgrade all existing lights to LED, implementing a policy to switch off lighting between midnight to 6AM, and reviewing the provision of street lighting with the aim to upgrade every other unit to LED and decommission remaining units.

The council will consider these options and their financial implications, and recommend a way forward.