Solar power boost for Ruthin primary schools

Additional solar power infrastructure is improving energy efficiency at a Ruthin primary school education site.

Work has finished at the Rhos Street School and Ysgol Pen Barras site which has seen extra PV panels installed on the building’s roof to help reduce reliance from national grid energy, reduce long term costs and reduce carbon emissions from the building.

It’s all part of Denbighshire County Council’s drive to reduce energy use and costs at buildings run by the local authority.

The Council’s Energy team has managed projects across Council owned buildings including schools, to help improve building energy efficiency, reduce carbon emissions and also usage costs over the longer term.

They assisted the Councils Education department in assessing how to improve the building’s energy efficiency.

The work saw the existing 16.80kWp solar PV system on the roof of the school increased to a 56.85kWp solar PV system.

The new PV panels alongside the existing ones will help harness energy from the sun to power the site, taking pressure off the local grid system and improving the reduction of carbon emissions on site.

Every Kilowatt generated by the PV panels and used by the schools will save around 22 pence.

The additional solar PV array will save the site an estimated 43,000kWh, and reduce carbon emissions by over eight tonnes of carbon emissions. 

Councillor Diane King, Lead Member for Education, Children and Families said: “This work will help both school’s overall energy usage and is a step forward in increasing the renewable energy capacity in our educational buildings. This installation is a collaborative effort between our Education and Energy team, who are working in tandem to help reduce long term energy costs and emissions simultaneously.”

Cllr Barry Mellor, Lead Member for Environment and Transport, added: “Our Energy team is extremely grateful to the staff at the site for allowing us to carry out this additional work to help the school lower energy usage and reduce long term costs and at the same time create a more pleasant environment for learning and wellbeing to support both pupils and staff.

“This is an important piece of work that supports our continuing drive to lower energy usage and costs and reduce carbon footprints across our building estate and it’s fantastic to see the schools and our Energy Team working together to achieve this.”