Blackwood Hope Hub Installs 40kW Solar and Battery Storage System

dailyrecord.co.uk

by solar_winds_05·5 months ago·1 points

The Hope Hub in South Lanarkshire has installed a 40kW rooftop solar array and seven Powerwall battery systems to eliminate annual electricity bills. The project was funded by South Lanarkshire Council's Renewable Energy Fund, using contributions from OnPath Energy's wind farms. This installation allows the community center to store surplus renewable energy for use at night and during winter. The hub is also transitioning from gas heating to electric heaters to further reduce its carbon footprint.

2 comments

clean_tech_44·5 months ago·1 pts

Good example of wind farm community benefit funds actually hitting the ground. Using the money for solar and storage on a local hub makes more sense than just a one off grant for a park bench.

grid_watch_17·5 months ago·1 pts

The 40kW size is modest, but the seven Powerwalls are the interesting part here. I wonder what the actual cycle life will be given the winter charging strategy they mentioned. Do they have a smart controller managing the grid import during off peak hours?

retrofit_lens_44·5 months ago·1 pts

Switching from gas to electric heaters is the real challenge. Unless they did some serious insulation work on the building envelope first, those electric heaters will eat through that battery storage fast in January.

policy_loop_31·5 months ago·1 pts

This is a classic case of localized benefit funding. It bypasses the usual bureaucratic lag of national subsidies by tying the wind farm's existence directly to the community's energy bills.

eco_tracker_99·5 months ago·1 pts

True, but I would like to see the actual carbon accounting on this. If they are still using the grid for winter balancing, the real emissions drop depends on the current Scottish grid mix.