WORLDNEWS
UK’s first solar powered business park opens
THE UK’s first solar business park has been connected to the National Grid, with 3,000 solar panels now powering Howbery Business Park in Wallingford, Oxfordshire. The solar array is expected to generate over 682MWh of clean electricity a year for the park. Howbery Business Park accommodates nearly 1,000 employees working for more than 20 organisations. The solar installation, 748kWp in size, is one of the first large scale ground-mounted systems of its kind to be connected to the National Grid under the Government’s Feed-in tariff (FIT) scheme.
Developed by HR Wallingford and Lightsource Renewable Energy, the solar installation was funded by Octopus Investments and local private investor Andrew Troup. The engineering, procurement and construction was carried by Solarcentury. This is its first to be built in the UK after the government introduced a solar FIT in 2010.
John Ormston, CEO of HR Wallingford Group, said, “Howbery Business Park is proud of its green credentials. Howbery Business Park will be one of only a few business parks in the UK where occupiers are able to secure a direct electrical supply from a solar array.”
Derry Newman, CEO of Solarcentury, said, “The solar at Howbery Business Park provides a glimpse of how this technology can contribute to our clean energy future, hinting at the serious role solar power can play in our energy mix. Solar is not to be underestimated. it is the fastest growing energy technology in the world, simply because it is clean, reliable and an alternative to fossil fuels.”
Investor Andrew Troup said: “The local community has been critically important in making this solar park a reality. It’s only been possible to meet the installation deadline because of the support from Wallingford Town Council and Crowmarsh
Parish Council and the cooperation and efficiency of South Oxfordshire District Council and the District Network operator, SSE. The support has been widespread”
This is not the first solar development for Wallingford. The Environment Agency’s regional Headquarters, Red Kite House at Howbery Business Park, is shaded and powered by solar louvers, also from
Solarcentury.There are many hundreds of solar parks now in existence across the world and together with solar on buildings, they are an increasingly common way of generating renewable power. Solarcentury and its partners are currently building two additional solar arrays of significant size, due for connection within the next month.
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www.solar-pv-uk.com Issue III 2011
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