Focus: Solar power plant at our Folkestone office in the UK

The UK is one of our most important markets and we have several offices there. Currently, renewable energy supplies available in the country cannot be taken into account for emission reductions as the UK government asks companies to calculate emissions from renewable electricity supplied via the grid by using an average grid emission factor.

Taking things into our own hands, we installed a solar power plant on the roof of our Folkestone office in the South of England. The idea was initially conceived during the ISO 14001 certification process completed in 2015 (see “Management system and certification”). With a peak power of 40 kWp, the plant can cover approximately 17% of the building’s power consumption over the whole year. It also makes good bottom-line sense, as the initial capital investment of GBP 56 000 is expected to have a payback time of merely seven years.

A solar power plant we installed on the roof of our Folkestone office can cover approximately 17% of its power consumption over the year.