A Bristol-based architectural aluminium manufacturer has agreed a power purchase agreement and long term lease of 7,000 solar panels on the roof of its º£½ÇÊÓƵ headquarters.
Smart Architectural Aluminium (Smart) agreed the deal with Centrica Business Solutions, which will see the 2.94MW installation provide Smart with green energy for the next 25 years whilst servicing 20% of the sites current energy needs.
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Centrica Business Solutions has started construction on the 7,000 solar panel array, across the roofs of three buildings at the manufacturing site in Yatton, near Bristol. The 2.94MW installation is the result of a long -term lease agreement between Smart and Centrica Business Solutions, which will see Centrica lease the roof space, finance the project and agree a power purchase agreement with Smart.
The agreement will give Smart price certainty and access to green electricity without any capital outlay, plus it will reduce operational CO2 emissions by 588 tonnes every year.
Justin Jacober, managing director at Centrica Business Solutions, said: “The project with Smart Architectural Aluminium represents one of our largest roof top solar arrays to date and we’re delighted to help them to meet their decarbonisation ambition. We want to continue supporting organisations with their sustainability challenges, this in turn creates more resilient businesses that can stand the test of time as well as reducing the º£½ÇÊÓƵ’s reliance on fossil fuels - accelerating our journey towards net zero.
“To be able to finance this deal in a zero capital way, is an incredibly attractive package for many businesses, who are wrestling with the balance between planet and profit, our message is you don’t need to make it a binary choice, you can do both.â€
Dean Thomas, managing director at Smart, added: “We’re excited to be working alongside Centrica to facilitate a significant portion of our energy demand from the roofs over our heads.
“Our net zero ambitions are at the heart of our growth strategy, and once construction is complete it will be great to know that a huge proportion of our future energy use will be both carbon neutral and affordable.â€
