If you run a horticultural business that has a high energy consumption, did you know that investing in renewable energy can help lower these costs? Despite the reduction in Government funded incentives such as the Feed-in Tariff (FIT), solar energy remains a safe, sensible investment which can cap your costs and guard against rising energy bills. 

It pays to go green

Like many businesses, you have probably noticed that your energy bills have gone up this year. Well, you're not alone! The big six energy companies have ALL increased their prices, some by as much as 12.5%! You guessed it, these prices are undoubtedly set to rise again which will have a negative impact on the profitability of your business.  

Well, help is on hand. Nip these rising energy costs in the bud (excuse the pun) and consider making a green (sorry) switch to renewable energy. Solar PV provides a minimal maintenance solution to meeting electricity demand. According to the Carbon Trust, a 20% cut in energy cost can represent the same bottom line benefit as a 50% increase in sales. 

How much can you save with solar? 

Despite the well publicised cuts to the FIT, solar installation prices have taken a tumble too. The good news - solar still pays! Expect to still receive anything between 10% to 16% annual return on your investment with an easily achievable payback of around 7 years. A typical 50kW roof mounted system today will cost in the region of £42K. Back in the apparent solar 'heydays' this same system cost in excess of £160K. Such a system can still provide returns of around £6k per year - that's better than the interest rates offered by most banks! 

We have helped a number of horticultural businesses reduce their costs with solar. A commercial fruit grower in Staffordshire turned to solar PV to reduce on-site electricity costs consumed by their office and cold stores. Seeing solar as a reliable, safe investment, the business initially installed a 50kW system which soon reaped the financial benefits. So much so that this initial system was proceeded by additional 100kW and 50kW arrays - now that's an endorsement for the savings that can be achieved with solar!  

Further savings can be made on your electric bill by investing in battery storage. Instead of exporting energy, save it in a battery to use when the sun isn't shining such as during the evening. 

It isnt just the financial returns that makes solar an attractive investment. Solar is hassle free, being very low maintenance and supported by a 25-year warranty on panels. The performance of a system can be managed remotely from a handy app on your phone.  Receive alerts informing of any under performance before they turn into costly downtime. We do recommend subscribing to a maintenance package which includes an annual inspection of the entire system to ensure that everything is working correctly and efficiently.   

What are the next steps? 

We realise that any investment can be a daunting one. Don't worry, we are her to help. Having carried carried out over 500 solar PV installations and by insisting that we only use market leading products, we are proud of our track record in creating real energy and financial savings for our customers. For more information about the benefits or to find out how much you could be saving, please get in touch.