Kier Stoke gives council offices a solar powered boost

Kier Stoke is installing 198 solar panels onto south and south west facing roofs of Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s Civic Centre building.

The panels will generate around 30,000 kw/h of energy, saving an estimated £3,000 in electricity costs each year.

In addition, the panels will also attract an estimated £9,400 a year in government feed-in tariffs for using solar panel energy. In 2009/10, the council spent £147,000 on electricity for the Civic Centre, a building which covers four floors, and has space for over 700 workers.

Kier Stoke will install the panels over an anticipated two-week period from Monday 14 March. The scheme will cost £134,500 and will be funded through the council’s existing climate change budget. The panels have an anticipated lifespan of 25 years, and could pay for themselves in as little as around 14 years.

Kier Stoke’s regional managing director David Mawson said: “As a business, Kier Stoke is committed to working with Stoke-On-Trent City Council to provide a sustainable energy future for the city and fully supports the government’s targets to reduce household carbon emissions by 29 percent by 2020.

“Because of the depth of knowledge and expertise within Kier Stoke, built up through our work on projects such as the solar photovoltaic panel retro-fit at Chell Heath, we are able to help raise the quality of life by driving down fuel bills and greatly reducing CO2 emissions across the city. We plan to upskill our current workforce to ensure a sustainable future in these challenging times.”

Councillor Terry Follows, cabinet member for environment, waste management and neighbourhood services, said: “These panels show that the city council is prepared to lead by example in helping to reduce the city’s carbon footprint.

“It is important that we all look at ways of becoming more energy efficient and work together to make a difference to our communities. Our city has a heavily industrialised past, and if you look back at the bellowing chimneys of pot kilns and soot-filled air of the last hundred years, we are making strides to improve the environment for future generations.

“Using green energy can also save money and reduce energy bills. I’m pleased that the council is taking such a pioneering step to install these panels.”

The solar panel scheme is the latest in a number of ways the authority is taking significant steps to improve the city’s green credentials.

Last September the authority signed an agreement with energy supplier E.ON which will deliver millions of pounds of investment to the city to improve the energy efficiency of homes and use green power to drive down residents’ fuel bills and help combat climate change.

The agreement has already seen 54 council properties in Chell Heath fitted with solar panels – the first time any of the council’s 19,000-strong housing stock has been powered by such green energy.

And the council is now putting the final touches in place for a scheme which will see more than 1,000 further council properties have similar panels installed.

Councillor Follows said: “We are committed to making Stoke-on-Trent a sustainable city, and the scale of the work we are doing is pioneering – other cities in the country will be following our example.

“We want to make a real difference in raising the quality of life of residents and do all we can to give them options to lower their fuel bills and use clean, green power.”