Yearsley Group switches on renewable energy
12.09.2011
Yearsley Group switches on
renewable energy
Huge investment in roof-mounted solar panel
installations
Yearsley Group, the UK's largest cold storage and distribution
provider, has installed solar panels at two of its cold stores in
England. The vast roofs at both the Heywood cold store in Greater
Manchester, and Holmewood near Chesterfield in Derbyshire, have
been fitted with a total of 5,000 sq metres of photovoltaic
panels.
These installations - each of around 2,500 sq m - are among the
largest roof mounted solar panel systems in the UK. Each system
produces 310,000 kilowatt hours per annum, thereby saving upwards
of 170 tons of CO2 per warehouse, and will reduce the
Group's reliance on the national grid. It is estimated they will
provide each of the cold stores with up to 10 per cent of its
annual electricity.
The £2.2m investment is part of an ongoing strategy by the
company to increase the energy it obtains from renewable sources by
2015, in line with Yearsley Group's commitment to carbon reduction
and sustainable sourcing. With the UK's largest national network of
cold stores, Yearsley Group has plans to install renewable
solutions (either solar or wind power) at other depots around the
UK.
Harry Yearsley, managing director of Yearsley Group, said:
"Sustainability is high on our agenda and the reduction of carbon
emissions is key in terms of our warehouse operation and in regards
to transportation. We have already implemented new management
systems for reducing waste road miles and updated many of the cold
stores with state-of-the-art insulation, but we knew we could do
more and began to investigate renewable.
"Cold storage by its nature requires a large energy input and,
with fuel prices increasing on an almost daily basis, any measures
we could employ to create our own electricity would be welcome.
Solar PV panels were the natural solution for the group as it makes
sense to use the large exposed surface area of the warehouses to
generate sustainable electricity. Hopefully these will be the first
of many renewable projects that will help us to meet our carbon
reduction commitments. It also coincides with our implementation of
ISO 14001, the environmental management standard and ISO 26000, the
international standard guidelines for social responsibility."
The panels have been installed on the southern elevation of each
of the two storage units - as this is the most effective for
catching the sun's rays - by Bury-based Solar Choice. Ajay
Hargreaves, sales director for Solar Choice, added: "Renewables, in
particular solar power, are becoming more popular in response to
increasing fuel costs and a rising public concern about energy
reduction and carbon emissions. Large companies are taking their
responsibilities to sustainability very seriously and seeking to
reduce their reliance on the national grid. Yearsley Group has made
a major investment and cleverly made use of its existing assets to
create green energy to help power its own operations. These are by
far the largest roof mounted installations we have ever done, and
will be one of the biggest in the UK, producing an enormous amount
of electricity in a clean and sustainable way."