1,700 solar panels on council buildings across Glasgow
Two day-care centres, five primary schools and the historic Kelvin Hall among council-owned buildings involved in new green energy scheme
Glasgow City Council has begun a programme to install more than 1,700 photovoltaic (PV) solar panels on council-owned buildings, with a total generating capacity exceeding 700,000 KWh per year.
Cllr Angus Millar (centre) with staff from the solar PV installation contractor on the roof at Haghill Primary School, photo courtesy of Glasgow City Council
These rooftop areas are expected to provide as much as 96% of the electricity required by each building, and in doing so save more than £183,000 per year in running costs. This is a sound, long-term investment: through these savings, the panels are expected to pay for themselves in, at most, seven years, but have a predicted life span in excess of 25 years.
Glasgow City Council already has 33 solar PV arrays in place, which between them generate some 600,000 KWh per year. The new phase involves eight buildings. The Kelvin Hall exhibition centre, which first opened in 1927 and is now used for a variety of arts and sporting activities, will be fitted with 1,000 PV panels – making it the largest rooftop array in Glasgow as well as one of the largest in Scotland.
As well as Kelvin Hall, the buildings included in this phase of installation are Castleton Primary School, Camstradden Primary School, Dalmarnock Primary School, Haghill Primary School, St Bernard’s Primary School, Mallaig Road Daycare and Muirhead Road Daycare.
The installation on these eight buildings is being paid for through a £522,000 Scotland Recycling Fund loan, with match funding from the council. The Scotland Recycling Fund scheme is in turn delivered by Salix on behalf of the Scottish government.
A feasibility study is currently being undertaken for a further 37 locations. An initial assessment suggests that the total output of solar arrays on all these buildings could produce nearly 3.2 GWh (that is, 3.2 million KWh) per year.
Cllr Angus Millar, City Convener for Climate at Glasgow City Council, says: ‘Solar power generation is a proven renewable energy that will dramatically cut our costs and reduce our carbon emissions. Vacant land is increasingly at a premium within Glasgow and so it makes sense to utilise the available space on roofs across our built estate. Installing solar on panels on buildings allows those buildings to benefit directly from the renewable energy that is produced and this helps us maximise the financial return of our investment.
‘Increased electricity prices, improved solar panel efficiency and lower prices for panels have all helped to reduce the effective payback period on PV installations. This means solar installation now comes with a significant period of zero cost, net zero electricity. Wherever possible we will install solar panels on our estate and we are currently looking at multiple locations throughout the city where solar can be introduced. We will keep working to access the available funding to ensure we create the highest possible capacity for solar generation from the council estate.”
Zoe Hurst, Programme Coordinator at Salix, adds: ‘We’re delighted to support Glasgow City Council with this ambitious project. The solar scheme will not only help to reduce the council’s energy bills but is being used as a way to educate the children and adults that use these facilities on the climate crisis and the benefits of solar.’
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