Why renewables?

Environmental

The UK’s current electricity supply comes mainly from burning fossil fuels, coal and gas contributing around 33% each, with nuclear power supplying around 20%.Surprisingly, given its natural endowment of renewable energy, Britain at present provides less than 3% of its electricity supply from such sources, the majority of which comes from bio-fuels and hydro power. For more information in this area visit www.electricityinfo.org

The burning of fossil fuels produces Carbon Dioxide (CO2) amongst other greenhouse gasses that collect in the atmosphere forming a layer, which in turn prevents heat escaping from the Earth. As this layer increases, more and more heat is trapped causing global temperatures to rise leading to what is now commonly referred to as global warming and climate change.

At the G8 summit in July 2005, the government committed to reducing Britain’s fossil fuel related CO2 emissions by 60% by 2050 and to generate 20% of our electricity from renewable sources by 2020.

By installing micro generation systems on domestic and business properties, we could greatly reduce CO2 emissions and our reliance on fossil fuels for our energy supply.

Financial

Generating renewable energy can earn you money! A grid connected system can not only generate electricity for the property on which it is installed but surplus power may be sold back to the national grid through an appropriate energy supplier. By implementing the necessary energy efficiency measures and reducing your consumption, you can potentially generate more electricity than you use and be paid for the excess, making a renewable energy installation a worthwhile financial investment. Grants and funding are available for the cost of purchase and installation of both stand alone and grid connect systems. In addition, an installed renewable energy system may significantly increase the value of a property, becoming a wise investment for the future.