The solar installation on the roof of St. Mary's Catholic School. Image: Engenera
Engenera has completed the installation of 610 solar PV panels on the roof of St. Mary's Catholic School in Newcastle.
It is the first of 12 schools in Newcastle to have solar installed as part of the new scheme, with Engenera working in partnership with Robertson Facilities Management to install solar panels complemented by energy storage technology at schools across the local education authority.
The installation at St. Mary's Catholic School is to produce 210kW of green energy annually, with this projected to give the school a cost saving of over £900,000 over a 20-year period.
Engenera has also installed energy monitoring technology, which is highly visible in the school’s reception. This displays the school’s energy consumption and carbon savings/footprint in real time, and is designed to encourage children to take an active interest in the carbon footprint of their place of education.
Bryan Glendinning, chief executive officer, Engenera, said: “It is amazing to be able to use our skills and technology to help these schools reduce their bills and carbon footprint, but it is even better to be able to also invest in grassroots education in this way and help inform and educate a new generation of children about the reality of energy generation and how technology can help make things better.”
The entire scheme across Newcastle will ultimately be managed by Aura, the Newcastle LEP (Local Education Partnership).
In July, Solarwatt announced it had supplied solar systems for 15 primary schools, although this rollout was located in Essex and installed by Eco Energy Environment and Ceetech Electrical, while in 2020 Egni Co-op completed solar installations on six schools roofs in Pembrokeshire, Wales.
Meanwhile, Engenera has also installed PV for Kings Lynn-based Sensient Technologies, with this also linked to energy monitoring technology. In October, it submitted a planning application for a 20MWp extension to Nissan's solar farm at its Sunderland plant, having been unveiled as Nissan's partner for the extension in May.