Renewable specialists, TGE Group has completed a second commercial solar installation on a North West poultry farm with matching returns on the first system installed two years ago, demonstrating the strong investment potential that can still be achieved by farms and businesses installing solar panels.
TGE group director, Stephen Davies explained: “The feed-in tariff has reduced in line with the cost of installation, giving the new project a similar predicted return of around 20%, earning five times the value of the investment over the twenty year FiT contract, alongside total carbon savings of 334 tonnes. The first 50kWp installation in 2012 was predicted to return the same, however it has exceeded expected output by a fifth each year.”
Poultry farmer, Ian Hocknell, who produces eggs for use in the pharmaceutical industry, contacted TGE Group for a second installation and was delighted that the return on investment was still as good as ever: “Our first installation was in 2012, when we were regarded as one of the earlier adopters of solar technology. Our system has given us good results and reliability and is operating at nearly 20% higher than was predicted for the first two years. It was therefore an easy decision to include solar PV at the second site.
“TGE Group is a well established local company who understood our requirements and who are able to design a system that met our needs. The team installed the equipment on schedule whilst the site was empty. I intend to use the remaining roof space for additional solar panels as a private pension investment.”
The new 50kWp bespoke system is designed to generate energy to power ridge fans and artificial lights controlling length of day for the 120,000 bird capacity poultry shed.
Solar panels continue to be a great way of turning empty roof space into income generators, reducing energy costs and acting as a buffer against unstable electricity prices. Farm buildings and business premises with high energy use are ideal for solar PV, whilst those with greater heat demands may well benefit from a combination of heat pump or biomass with solar PV.
TGE Group provides renewable energy systems for clients in the commercial, agricultural and public sectors. The company covers all renewable energy technologies including solar, biomass and heat pumps to help customers reduce energy costs. The broad range of products also compliments their existing energy management and distribution services.
