Standard content for Members only

To continue reading this article, please login to your Utility Week account, Start 14 day trial or Become a member.

If your organisation already has a corporate membership and you haven’t activated it simply follow the register link below. Check here.

Become a member

Start 14 day trial

Login Register

RWE invests in British solar plant

Solar company Conergy has signed a contract to construct a 37 MW solar plant for RWE, the parent company of Npower.

The engineering, procurement and construction contract marks the first time that RWE has invested in British solar.

The 129-acre site is on a disused airfield classified as brownfield land at Kencot Hill, 19 miles from the City of Oxford. Once connected towards the end of this summer, the 144,000-panel ground-mounted plant will produce enough electricity to power 10,000 homes.

Conergy claims the plant will save approximately 380,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions over the next twenty four years – the length of time for which the site has permission – based on the energy mix of today’s National Grid.

Robert Goss, managing director at Conergy UK, said: “The latest IPCC report highlighted the need for increased investment in low-carbon power, so RWE’s commitment to British solar is very welcome. Large-scale plants in the right places, like Kencot Hill, already provide power to tens of thousands of homes, and will avoid millions of tonnes of carbon emissions.”