Benu Energy has completed a ground mounted solar farm for Bristol City Council with just under 7,000 solar panels being installed on a former oil depot site to create a 1.8 MWp solar farm, in Avonmouth, near Bristol.
Benu Energy, a renewable energy company, partnered with Ikaros Solar to design and build the array, in December 2015, in time for a feed in tariff deadline. The Councils owns the installation and benefits from the feed-in tariff. The energy will save the equivalent of over 850 tonnes of carbon dioxide, per year, and provide the equivalent energy consumption of over 450 houses.
James King, Energy Supply Programme Manager at Bristol City Council, said: The Council is always looking to find ways to operate more efficiently. The solar farm is located next to two existing wind turbines and is a great use of the old oil depot site. The solar farm will help reduce our carbon footprint as we strive to become a more environmentally sustainable Council.
The solar farm is a significant milestone in Bristol City Councils environmental strategy, and an example of the citys achievements as European Green Capital in 2015. The council intends to continue its sustainable energy activities with a programme of Solar PV, energy efficiency and district heat projects.
James Bracegirdle, managing director for Benu Energy, said: We were absolutely delighted to be selected by Bristol City Council who ran their tender process through Public Power Solutions – to build solar farm. We worked with Ikaros Solar to design and build an appropriate solar installation for the site. The success of the project is a great advert for what can be done on brown field sites turning redundant land into a generation station to help reduce carbon emissions and protect the environment for the future.
