Ground mounted Solar panels turn unused land into £’s at potato farm
Ground mounted Solar panels turn unused land into £’s at potato farm
| 20 year Return | £254,000 |
|---|---|
| Payback | 8 years (11% return) |
| Cost | £100,000 - £125,000 |
| Bill Saving | £1,400 p.a. |
| Income | £11,300 p.a. |
| Carbon Offset | 17,000 Kg p.a. |
Return is calculated using combined bill savings and subsidy earnings. Bill savings are calculated using estimated energy usage and either the electricity price at the time of installation (1 November, 2011) or, for our heating products, the existing fuel type available to the property.
As this potato and arable farm was continuously pumping water to irrigate and cool potatoes, the result was a particularly high energy demand for the farm in the summer months.
Oldbury Farm was keen to find a way to reduce energy bills and generate a return on investment.
EnergyMyWay installed a 37.44kWp solar system with 180 x 250W Sharp PV modules.
It was decided that the best and least obtrusive place to add the solar panels would be a reservoir on the north bank, meaning that unused ground could be used productively. With a lot of sunlight captured from the reservoir it also meant a very high performance – 35% above the standard yield expected of a system of this size.
Other aspects to the job included the need for a geotechnical survey to check the area was suitable – which was given the all clear; a hand rail for safety; and an infrared security system.
With the customer very happy with the work and the outcome they are investigating further projects.
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