Rattery village hall becomes self sufficient with solar
Becosolar Ltd has been specified to provide and install high quality solar photovoltaic modules at Rattery Village Hall as part of extensive energy saving measures to reduce running costs following a site assessment carried out by Devon Association of Renewable Energy.
The Village Hall Committee has been able to benefit from funding available from the Low Carbon Building Programme as well as receiving grants from South Hams District Council and smaller contributions from local sources which has paid for over half the cost of the initial installation.
After winning a competitive tender due to the best design offering and the ability to provide a local service, Becosolar installed 180W monocrystalline solar modules to the existing slated roof using the SEN Sol 46 roof mounting system. One hundred modules were installed to give a 18 kWp system which will produce approximately 16,500kWh of electricity per year and save over 9 tonnes of CO2 from being generated. The system has been connected via three SMA SMC6000 inverters and features a large display in the entrance of the hall to show the accurate output and CO2 savings.
Commenting on the project, Rachel Coaker, Chairman of the Village Hall Committee said, " We chose to specify Becosolar after a presentation given by the company regarding the benefits of renewable energy. Rather than baffling us with science, the concept was explained to us in a language we could understand, giving us confidence in the project." She continued, " As a competitively priced, local company we have been extremely pleased with the results gained by installing the Becosolar system, which will have paid for itself in approximately 8 years due to the feed-in tariff system being introduced this year."
The feed-in tariff legislation will fix an above market rate on the price of electricity bought from renewable energy producers meaning that self sufficient energy producers will be eligible for an increased pay-back on any excess electricity produced which is then fed back into the grid.
The reduced running costs for the hall have allowed the committee to keep hire charges for the hall to a minimum for the various functions and local events that are held in the facility.
With over 20 years’ experience designing and installing photovoltaic solar energy systems, Becosolar are one of the UK’s longest established solar energy solutions providers, specialising in PV systems for industrial, commercial, marine and domestic applications.
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