Newly merged UK retail society OurCoop has been awarded bronze in the Transformation Project of the Year category at the 2026 Global Sustainability Awards, recognising its green energy transformation and work to accelerate renewable energy across its own estate and in communities across the country.
Judges recognised OurCoop’s approach to using its scale as the UK’s largest independent co-operative to accelerate decarbonisation, strengthen long-term energy resilience and extend the benefits of clean energy beyond its own operations.
OurCoop was formed in January through merger of Central, Midcounties and Chelmsford Star co-ops, and says it has combined the environmental measures the three societies had put in place. This, it adds, has enabled the society to use its combined scale across almost 500 food stores, alongside its travel, funeral, early years, mobile, broadband and energy businesses, to accelerate renewable energy generation, procurement and energy efficiency.
The society highlights the expansion of its solar programme, with panels now installed across more than 130 sites. Over the past 12 months, these have generated around 4.7 GWh of renewable electricity and saved more than 800 tonnes of CO₂, says OurCoop.
Alongside this are collaborative efforts with the wider co-op sector, with a corporate power purchase agreement (CPPA) linked to the London Array offshore wind farm, providing a consortium of five independent co-ops with up to 56 GWh of green electricity each year. A second CPPA is generating enough renewable electricity to power the equivalent of the former Chelmsford Star estate in its entirety, and more, says OurCoop.
The society says it is also working to cut energy consumption, with automation and remote monitoring technology introduced in refrigeration systems across the food retail estate. Since 2024, says OurCoop, this has reduced energy consumption by 2.5 GWh and more than 400 tonnes of CO₂, while delivering around £500,000 in annual electricity savings.
In terms of wider impact, OurCoop is working through Younity, its joint venture with Octopus Energy, to support almost 300 renewable power purchase agreements (PPAs) across 100 community energy organisations, helping local projects generate and benefit from clean energy.
Younity says it provides community energy organisations with bespoke PPAs, funding and practical support to overcome some of the barriers that can prevent projects from growing. It has also supported organisations through grant funding to support social impact projects and launched Community Energy Connect, a free volunteer matchmaking platform enabling volunteers to find opportunities within the community energy sector.
Related: OurCoop and Younity launch new product for Community Energy Fortnight
OurCoop also points to its work with Younity to develop consumer-facing innovation through the Community Power Tariff, which is powered entirely by community-generated electricity.
“Being recognised at the Global Sustainability Awards is a fantastic endorsement of what can be achieved when we use the scale and strength of co-operation to tackle one of the biggest challenges facing our society,” said OurCoop’s head of sustainability, Mike Pickering.
“Our green energy transformation is about much more than changing where we get our electricity. It is about investing in renewable generation, reducing energy consumption, building resilience and finding ways to make clean energy work for communities too.
“From our own stores and businesses to community energy projects across the country, we’re demonstrating that organisations can take practical action to reduce emissions while helping create a cleaner, more sustainable energy system.”
Related: OurCoop partnerships generate enough renewable power for 65,000 homes
Other winners on the night included Co-op Live, the Manchester concert arena owned by Eastlands Arena Ltd, which is sponsored by the Co-op Group.
It is the UK’s only music-first arena, bringing together visual technology, acoustics and sound bowl design.
A net zero building which is supporting Manchester City Council’s goal of being net zero by 2038, it was named Company of the Year.
The venue uses 100% renewable energy, sends zero waste to landfill, has donated more than £1m to the community and has delivered a £785m economic boost.
Around the arena, Co-op Live has sustainable travel options such as trams and walking routes and has increased biodiversity, including living green walls and wildflowers.
