West Suffolk Council's story
West Suffolk Solar for Business is an initiative run by West Suffolk Council which provides and installs solar panels on the roofs of local businesses for free. This generates clean power that is sold to businesses at a lower rate than their current tariff to reduce energy bills.
Suffolk Councils have all committed to reaching net-zero by 2030 and the Solar for Business scheme is one of the ways that West Suffolk Council is helping local companies to meaningfully cut their carbon emissions and reliance on grid power.
We market the scheme across the local business community and partner with interested owners to assess the suitability of their roof space. If a business property is appropriate for solar, our team carries out all approvals and oversees the installation process; installation includes an inverter, a smart generation meter, and a smart export meter for accurate billing and monitoring.
The Council maintains ownership of the solar panels throughout their lifetime, and we monitor their performance remotely as well as carrying out all maintenance activities. This means the businesses taking part in the scheme don't have to worry about future repair or upkeep costs.
We have already helped over 60 businesses to install solar PV panels on their premises, saving an estimated 915 tonnes of carbon emissions per year. This is the equivalent of driving around the earth 90 times and represents a saving of £125,000 a year for local businesses! The scheme also allows companies to amplify their green credentials and branding, helping them to connect with environmentally conscious customers.
Feedback from the companies we have partnered with so far has been incredibly positive and we are continuing to expand West Suffolk Solar for Business to support other companies in the local area.
Useful Learnings from West Suffolk Council
Make the process easy – To encourage local businesses to get involved, it's important to keep things simple. By overseeing planning, installation, and maintenance of the solar panels, we remove common financial and time barriers for companies. To get involved all they have to do is send us a recent energy bill and some simple details, it makes engaging with the scheme quick and easy.
West Suffolk Council's metrics
Carbon emissions reduction.
Energy bill savings.
