7 February 2014
In partnership with Brighton Energy Co-operative, Shoreham Port has taken another major step forward in its commitment to install large scale renewable energy at the Port. The latest phase has involved installing 880 solar panels on the roof of one of the Port’s warehouses on Basin Road South, which will have the capacity to generate up to 214kWp. This adds to the existing solar array at Hove Enterprise Centre.
The financing has come from local people investing in the Co-operative with the prospect of a 5% interest on their investment each year. As a trust Port, Shoreham is very supportive of developments run by the local community and was keen to be a part of the project.
The electricity that will be produced will be used on site to power offices, a repair workshop and other port operations. Peter Davies, Development Director at Shoreham Port said “We now have over 1,200 solar panels on the Port with another 800 planned later this year. This will help us to cut our energy bill and reduce our carbon footprint.”
Will Cottrell, Director at Brighton Energy Co-operative added "It's been great working with Shoreham Port, their staff and expertise have been an invaluable source of support for this project. We look forward to further fruitful collaborations with the Port in future."
Gary O’Neill, Assistant Engineering Manager at Shoreham Port, who helped to organise the installation of the solar panels said “Working with a number of different contractors we successfully finished the installation over the weekend. After the new meter reading was added it was all systems go. Now the final connections are in place, installing further solar panels will be a faster process.”
Terry Budd, I.T. Specialist at Shoreham Port who also assisted in the project added “Despite the complex electrical systems used within the Port, the installation went smoothly, with very little disruption to our day to day operations.”
On 14th February the solar panels will be switched on by Mike Weatherley, MP for Hove and Portslade. For further information about the launch please contact Flemmich Webb at webbfreelance@mac.com.
To find out more about the Brighton Energy Co-operative and how you can invest in the next phase, please visit www.brightonenergy.org.uk.
