Community Energy. Community Mobility. Community Ownership.
Zip Operations (ZipOps) is pioneering a new kind of local energy ecosystem in Appleby — one where clean, low-cost power flows through homes, vehicles, and community spaces, powered by overnight low-tariff electricity, fractionally owned rooftop solar, and mobile battery assets.
- • Lower, more predictable energy and heating bills
- • Community-owned solar, batteries, and EV mobility
- • Energy that Appleby can own, move, and share
A new kind of community-owned energy network
RAP brings together smart home energy, mobile power, community solar ownership, and shared mobility to create a town that is cleaner, more resilient, and more affordable for everyone. Energy spending stays local, building community wealth instead of enriching distant corporate investors.
- Appleby
- First UK community to pilot the Resilient Appleby Project.
- Community
- Energy, mobility & ownership in a single shared ecosystem.
A smarter, fairer, community-owned energy network
RAP integrates homes, rooftop solar, heat pumps, portable batteries, and EV mobility services into a single community-owned energy ecosystem.
Community energy, mobility & ownership
RAP brings together smart home energy, mobile power, community solar ownership, and shared mobility to create a town that is cleaner, more resilient, and more affordable for everyone.
Energy spending stays in Appleby, building community wealth and long-term local value.
Key components
- • Ultra-low-tariff overnight energy capture via V2HomeShare and/or B2HomeShare
- • Hot-swapping portable batteries
- • Mobile Energy Assets (MEAs) — EVs + portable battery packs
- • Indoor Smart Docking Connector (SDC) + Smart HomeShare Kit (SHK) for battery-to-home power
- • Outdoor Battery Racking System (BRS) for overnight portable battery charging
- • Fractionally owned solar & energy assets via RWA-NFTs
- • Clean, shared electric mobility services
This is energy Appleby can own, move, and share.
How RAP works in Appleby
Four connected steps turn low-tariff electricity, solar, EVs, and batteries into a community-owned energy and mobility network.
Step 1
Capture ultra-low-tariff energy overnight
Every night, RAP captures ultra-low-tariff electricity using:
- • Your own bi-directional EV, or a MyZipEV Car Club EV supplied daily by Appleby CMS
- • Portable batteries stored outdoors in the Battery Racking System (BRS)
- • Two indoor battery packs connected to the SDC
- • The Smart HomeShare Kit (SHK) managing the full energy flow
By sunrise, homes have a fully charged EV and/or a full set of portable batteries ready to power the home.
Step 2
Power your home at the lowest cost
During the day, the bi-directional EV and/or the SDC-connected batteries plus SHK feed your Air Source Heat Pump (ASHP) and household electrical system with stored low-cost energy.
Benefits include:
- • Lower heating bills
- • Predictable household costs
- • Reduced reliance on expensive daytime grid pricing
Even when an EV is not connected, the indoor SDC-connected batteries keep your home running.
Step 3
Move energy wherever Appleby needs it
EVs and hot-swapping batteries aren't just storage — they're Mobile Energy Assets (MEAs).
They deliver power anywhere in Appleby for:
- • Community events
- • Outlying farms
- • Local shops and businesses
- • Schools & community centres
- • Emergency and resilience support
Energy flows to community needs, not grid limitations.
Step 4
Two integrated services: CES + CMS
CES — Community Energy Service
- • Community-owned renewable energy
- • Indoor SDC + SHK powering ASHP & home loads
- • Outdoor BRS for battery intake/return
- • Overnight charging via low tariffs + solar
- • Managed by CES/CMS DAO partners
- • Fractional ownership via RWA-NFTs
CMS — Community Mobility Service
- • Access to MyZipEV Car Club vehicles
- • EVs act as mobile storage + mobile power
- • Mobility powered by Appleby's own stored energy
- • Vehicle assets also fractionally owned via RWA-NFTs
The ZipOps Tech Advantage
ZipOps tech blends fractionally co-owned assets with overnight low-tariff electricity and community-owned renewables.
Fractionally co-owned assets
- • Bi-directional EVs (V2HomeShare)
- • Portable battery packs (B2HomeShare)
Combined with overnight low-tariff electricity and community solar, this creates a radically low-cost, clean energy mix for the whole town.
“The lowest-cost, cleanest community energy mix in the UK — tested first in Appleby.”
Business Partnerships
Collaborations
The Resilient Appleby Project (RAP) is building a community-owned energy, mobility, and robotics ecosystem in Appleby-in-Westmorland. We work with partners who want to collaborate in a live, real-world environment — not a laboratory or closed pilot.
Our approach is infrastructure-first, open, and manufacturer-agnostic. RAP does not build humanoid robots. Instead, we provide the shared energy, charging, mobility, governance, and operational foundations required to deploy autonomous and humanoid robotic systems safely, sustainably, and at scale.
Community Energy Service (CES)
A DC-coupled, grid-independent microgrid powered by rooftop solar and battery storage. CES provides the foundational energy layer for all RAP services.
Community Mobility Service (CMS)
A shared mobility and logistics service operating:
- • A fleet of bi-directional EVs via the MyZipEV Car Club
- • Community-owned & operated utility vehicles, including semi-autonomous platforms
- • Physical movement of TommyCan™ battery packs and critical equipment
CMS acts as the energy and logistics layer connecting CES and CRS.
Community Robot Service (CRS)
Shared robotic services operated for community benefit, supporting:
- • Livestock management and land stewardship
- • Field boundary monitoring
- • Crop and land inspection
- • Humanoid EV re-charging
- • Field maintenance and hazardous environments
How the services work together
CES generates and stores energy, CMS moves energy and assets, and CRS delivers robotic services — all operated as community-shared infrastructure via a community-led DAO governance model.
Collaboration opportunities
We welcome collaboration with organisations aligned with open systems, resilience, and community-scale deployment, including:
- • Open-source humanoid and robotic platform developers (particularly in NATO-aligned nations)
- • Energy, battery, and power electronics partners
- • Mobility, EV, and autonomous vehicle developers
- • Open-source, academic, and public-interest organisations
What RAP is not
RAP is not a manufacturing programme, a closed or proprietary platform, a single-vendor pilot, or a defence project. It is a civilian-led, community-owned infrastructure initiative designed to be open, resilient, and replicable.
Work with us
If your organisation is interested in collaborating with the Resilient Appleby Project, we would welcome a conversation.
Please contact us via appleby.energy with:
- • A short overview of your organisation or project
- • The type of collaboration you are exploring
- • Any relevant technical or operational focus
We are particularly keen to hear from partners who value open systems, shared infrastructure, and community ownership.
Looking for a New Year's challenge?
Community Energy. Community Mobility. Community Ownership.
Join the Appleby Energy Cold Start Team (CST) and help pioneer Appleby's resilient, zero-carbon, low-cost energy and mobility future.
The CST is a group of early-stage volunteers who want to help pioneer, shape, test, and demonstrate what community-led energy and mobility solutions can achieve.
Why RAP matters
Keep money local
Energy spending stays in Appleby — building local value, not corporate profit.
Local energy resilience
RAP keeps lights, heat, and the EV fleet running during outages, flooding, grid stress, and extreme weather.
Join the Resilient Appleby Project
Be part of the UK’s first fully community-owned clean energy and mobility network. Stay updated as new services, pilots and opportunities launch in Appleby.
Sign up for project news, event invitations and opportunities to participate — including Home Hub pilots, fractional ownership and community mobility services.
Ways to get involved
- • Home Hub Pilot User
- • Fractional RWA-NFT owner
- • MyZipEV Community Mobility user
- • RAP partnering business, farmer, or landowner
- • Cold Start Team volunteer