It’s not always easy to feel inspired on the way out of winter in the UK but we have lots of reasons to be cheerful here at the Big Solar Co-op 🌞
Installations keep going up and we expect to deliver one a month through 2025. Last month 247 panels went up at Hornsey Steel Panels & Sections Ltd in Bucknell, Shropshire and the next installation will be at the Freemantle and Shirley Community Centre in Southampton. This smallish array is a really important one; on a building providing amenities for hire for all sections of the local community and acting as a hub for AgeUK services for local elderly adults. Keep an eye on the Projects webpage for each new solar array as they go live 🙌
There are now 9 rooftop solar installations owned by Big Solar Co-op members and as you can see from the graph below, through March 2025 they collectively generated over 3 megawatts on most days. You can now track what is happening generation-wise in real time via the Live Solar Monitor on the website.
Feelgood movies
Last Autumn we installed a solar array at Eden Court Medical Practice in Birmingham and now we are delighted to share the mini-film we made about it 🙌
The GP surgery sits in the heart of the community of Castle Vale in the east side of the city. The 30kWp solar installation will help them to take a big step towards decarbonising their building and power their on site EV charger too. With 89 solar panels meeting 50% of their energy needs and saving 6 tonnes of Co2 equivalent in the first year, this project shows how vital community sites can champion sustainability and set a standard for others.
Video credits: Painted Life Productions
In 2023 we installed a 1500+ solar panel array on the packhouse roof at Eco-pak in Cambridgeshire. The panels meet around 75% of the daytime electricity demand on site, saving the company around £1 million over 30 years and cutting carbon emissions by approximately 100 tonnes in year one. Having solar panels fitted has been a boon for the business – so much so that they have felt able to create 4 new jobs.
“It was the perfect solution at the perfect time for us. We were worried about increasing energy costs, and I’d had a quote for solar of around £500K. As we’d just bought the building, we’d have needed a bank loan, which would have required a 25% deposit, which at the time we didn’t have.”
Richard Hall, Operations Director at EcoPak
Co-op members taking action
We are always seeking to make the best use of any funds invested with us and working through our existing networks is a great example of that. We have a slide pack for registered Volunteer members who want to present the Big Solar Co-op offer to local groups and a smart flyer that anyone can request and distribute. Please get in touch via this short form if you would like to put fliers up in your local area on noticeboards, distribute to local groups, door to door etc to get the word out about the investment opportunity.
Each month, Jon Hallé has been running a live public Zoom call to provide updates and a presentation of the community shares concept. Walking us through some of the Projects already collectively owned by the Big Solar Co-op Members; from factories to schools, leisure centres to steelworks, supermarkets to community centres and what we expect to be installing in the coming months. The next call is on Tuesday 8 April 12:30 – 13:30 (on Zoom), click the button below if you would like to register: