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Renewable energy project recognised in second national awards

Renewable energy project recognised in second national awards

East Midlands based renewable energy company Geo Green Power have received their second shortlisting for a national award for their project at North Nottingham’s RT Farms.

This hybrid installation has been nominated in the Non-Domestic Ground Source Heat Pump category of the National ACR and Heat Pump awards, which are being held at the Midland Hotel, Manchester on 23 January. Earlier this year this same project was shortlisted in the Commercial Project of the Year category at the Solar Power and Storage awards.

The renewable energy installation at this East Midlands farm is a leading example of our region taking climate action. The project combines solar power and one of the UK’s largest ground source heat pump installations and is saving almost 500 tonnes of CO2 every year; and it’s no coincidence that it has caught the eye of industry experts in both renewable heating and solar energy.

Sales & Marketing Director, James Cunningham said:

“We’re delighted to be shortlisted for this award, with the same project being shortlisted for the Solar Power and Storage award it demonstrates our expertise across the renewable energy sector.

“Towards the end of last year it was becoming clear that more and more individuals and businesses were contacting us because they wanted to do more to reduce their emissions. With the climate crisis continuing to make headlines around the world projects such as our installation at RT Farms show that there is a real alternative to fossil fuels when it comes to heating and powering our homes and businesses.”

Geo Green Power have worked alongside RT Farms for many years, completing solar installations which provide renewable energy for the business and take advantage of the feed in tariff payments available at the time. When the grid offered a 1.5MW export connection the feed in tariff was set to reduce so Geo Green Power used their experience of solar PV and ground source heat pump technology to create a suitable scheme for the business.

Geo Green Power’s installation has increased solar production at the farm and removed the need for LPG which was previously used for heating and drying crops. The installation means the 2,500 acre farm business has increased solar output, transferred even more of the farm’s operation onto renewable energy and is now eligible for the Feed in Tariff and Renewable Heat Incentive.

As RT Farms prides itself on its sustainable farming credentials, this move away from fossil fuels is a crucial milestone.

RT Farms’ James Thomas added:

“Geo Green Power have designed an intelligent system to barn dry agricultural crops with renewable heat. The system prioritises the use of our solar PV generated electricity and reduces the higher cost, imported electricity from the grid.

“When we are not drying crops, during the winter, generated heat is re-directed to a district heating system within our traditional farm buildings for climate-controlled storage and working areas.

“Geo Green Power took a very thorough and detailed approach to this system and we continue to work alongside them to meet our ever-evolving requirements within our business.”

Statistics:

Delivering on the Investment

The 250kW solar PV system generates approximately 225,000kWh of electricity per annum. This power is programmed to feed the ground source heat pump system directly and any surplus can either be consumed elsewhere around the site or exported to the grid.

Multiplying Solar PV energy into 1,000,000kWh of useful heat

The ground source heat pump system efficiently and effectively multiplies the electrical energy input to the power of 4. The system sources heat from the ground and uses 1kWh of electricity to produce 4kWh of heat. This means that the 225,000kWh of solar electricity that supplies the heat pump generates approximately 1,000,000kWh of renewable heat!

Carbon Emissions and the UK’s Zero Emissions Target

The solar generation alone will reduce carbon emissions by approximately 112 tonnes per annum and when combined with the heat pump a further 375 tonnes of CO2 could be saved every year. This type of hybrid system will become more and more important if we are going to meet the targets currently being outlined by the Committee on Climate Change.

Return on Investment

The farm business was paying approximately £50,000.00 in LPG every year for their heating and drying requirements which is now a direct saving being delivered by the hybrid scheme we’ve installed.

The new Solar PV element of the scheme will earn around £4,000.00 in feed in tariffs and the heat pump system will earn in excess of £115,000.00 every year through the Renewable Heat Incentive.


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