With energy prices set to grow by up to 37% by 2020, the opportunity to reduce utility bills is a strong incentive for investigating renewable energy options. Government initiatives such as Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) and Feed in Tariff (FiT), which are also designed to act as incentives for businesses to act quickly and benefit from the capped level of funding on offer.
The Carbon Trust Advisory conducted interviews with leading companies to find out about the challenges, opportunities and best practice associated with implementing renewable energy measures. The industries with the most to gain are utilities, manufacturing, retail, hospitality and agricultural sectors.
Retailers and consumer goods brands are tending to lead the way. ASDA, IKEA, John Lewis and Marks & Spencer have all set a target of moving to 100% renewable energy. The Carbon Trust Advisory analysis of the results shows that businesses are taking a mixed approach to sourcing renewable energy from either their own projects or purchases from energy providers. One business which has made strong progress in this area is IKEA. The furniture retailer now obtains 80% of its total energy use for renewable and has invested in a mix of ground source heat pumps, biomass, solar panels and wind power.
Charlie Browne, IKEA UK and Ireland Sustainability Manager, explains: “Taking care of people and the environment is integral to how we do business, so we are continually working to significantly reduce our carbon footprint from all parts of our operations. As part of our global ‘IKEA Goes Renewable’ programme, we are committed to heavily investing in making IKEA buildings more energy efficient and using more renewable energy. For example, our most recently built UK based stores in Coventry, Southampton and Dublin have been designed to incorporate measures that will have a major impact on these areas, including geothermal heating and cooling systems, biomass boilers and improved insulation. Our recent investment into a 12.3 Megawatt wind farm in Aberdeenshire and a £4million investment to fit over 39,000 photovoltaic (solar) panels to the rooftops of 10 IKEA stores shows our clear actions to reach our goal of 100% renewable energy supply.”
Commenting on the report, Hugh Jones, Managing Director, Carbon Trust Advisory, said: “This report should help convince more UK businesses to move to renewable energy. However, selecting the right strategy for renewable energy can be a complex area and we recommend that businesses make a staged approach to adoption. This includes trialling different measures, testing their viability and doing this sooner rather than later before energy price increases and regulatory pressure become more pressing.”
Reference: Carbon Trust - full report can be downloaded here:
http://www.carbontrust.co.uk/Publications/pages/publicationdetail.aspx?id=CTA004
Urban Energy
Urban Energy are delighted that nearly half the population would like to install renewable energy technologies; what worries us is the lack of awareness surrounding it. To bridge the Green Gap it’s essential we continue to educate consumers and break down some of the myths surrounding the Green Deal, energy efficiency and microgeneration.
Urban Energy has earned a reputation as the south’s leading renewable energy specialist. This has been achieved by ensuring that from the initial point of client contact we offer 1st class customer service and care.
We only
install products that lead the way within the renewable energy industry
and that are renowned for their high quality and ecologically sound
production. This reflects our own high standards and quality assurance.
We understand that introducing a renewable energy system to either your home or business is an investment that lasts for many years. With our in-house electrical and plumbing division it is our promise to you the customer that your satisfaction and peace of mind throughout this period is our number one priority.
For further information about Urban Energy products and services:
Call: 0800 232 1624
Email: info@urbanenergy.org.uk
Website: http://www.urbanenergy.org.uk/
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