RenEnergy has supported Braintree Council with a large-scale 407KW solar panel installation in Essex as part of the authority’s drive to increase efficiency and reduce emissions from its buildings.
Expected to produce over 399MWh of energy annually, the renewable energy specialist installed 983 solar panels on the Witham Leisure Centre, including both solar carports and roof arrays.
Before getting started with the task, the council faced a few initial hurdles. Firstly, the project needed to be delivered before the Sport England Funding deadline at the end of March 2025 and in line with its requirements for funding.
Secondly, as the rooftop and carport solutions were installed at the same time, there were various logistical, resource and health and safety considerations. The scale of the project also meant that numerous local contractors were working on-site together, so clear communication and quick decision-making was vital for bringing the Braintree Council renewable energy vision to life.
To ensure these problems were addressed early on, RenEnergy UK was able to collaborate closely with all of the stakeholders to complete the project before initial deadline. Now, the leisure centre avoids an estimated 59,415kg of CO2 emissions each year and it will be operating at a 34.7% self-sufficiency level. The extra supply of clean energy also means the centre can reduce operational costs on the site with better efficiency and lower emissions from energy.
There may also be the chance to add EV chargers outdoors, to support the current Labour government’s target of having 300,000 charge points across the UK by the end of the decade.
The task has come at a time when numerous local authorities across the UK are navigating renewable energy rollout in line with their sustainability goals. These targets are increasingly important with the current backdrop of the UK’s net zero drive and ambitious goals laid out in the Clean Power 2030 strategy.
Mark Wilson, Sustainability Manager at Braintree District Council said, “We are beyond impressed with the work RenEnergy UK has done to install these solar panels for us. Right now, lots of local councils up and down the country are looking for sustainability solutions and we’ve shown that stakeholders investing in this has immense benefits for everyone.”
RenEnergy’s recent work on the Witham Leisure Centre forms a part of the specialist’s role in clean energy rollout in the UK, which has also seen the company launch its ongoing research on solar car ports. The research has already found 629,000 car park spaces with the potential to have solar carports installed across a range of commercial sites that utilise high amounts of energy.
Damian Baker, Managing Director of RenEnergy UK said, “We were able to maximise less space by using rooftop and carport arrays, both of which haven’t disrupted the daily operations of the leisure centre. It’s more than possible to reach environmental targets without reducing the operational efficiency of the buildings we work on.”
