Scottish Water Completes Ambitious Solar Energy Scheme

Utility company Scottish Water has just completed an ambitious solar energy scheme that will help power two of Aberdeen’s main service reservoirs and support the firm’s 2040 net zero emissions target, with the installation of over 1,700 solar photovoltaic panels that can generate 0.52 GWh of energy each year.

Commercial subsidiary Scottish Water Horizons invested £800,000 to boost the green credentials of one of the supplier’s largest energy consuming assets, while helping to slash its carbon footprint by about 120 tonnes of CO2 annually – which is the equivalent of offsetting 435,000 miles from the average passenger car.

An electric vehicle charging point has also been included as part of this particular project, supporting Scottish Water’s transition away from fossil fuels to clean energy for its fleet of vans.

This scheme now brings the total number of solar panels installed on Scottish Water sites to more than 40,000, generating a combined total of 10MW of energy. There are now nearly 80 water and wastewater treatment works run by the supplier that are either self-sufficient or partly sufficient when it comes to generating their own power requirements.

John Sammon, low carbon team lead at Scottish Water Horizons, said: “We are delighted to hit this significant milestone with the completion of the Cults solar project as we continue our journey towards net zero by 2040. We are continuously looking at the ways we can reduce our carbon output across all our activities and renewable energy is a significant part of that.

“This site is one of Scottish Water’s biggest energy consuming assets and we are proud that we can now meet some of that need with the energy generated by the solar panels. In addition, we will export ten per cent of the energy generated to the national grid, to help power homes and businesses in the area.”

And early last month (October), Scottish Water also joined a group of Scotland’s leading businesses to launch a new climate action initiative ahead of COP26, which is currently taking place in Glasgow right now, with the aim being to accelerate the transition to a net zero future.

The businesses involved – including Scottish Water, Scottish Power, Lloyds Banking Group, EY, Diageo and Aggreko – represent some 25,000 employees in Scotland and 570,000 around the world, with over £92 billion in global revenue.

The Scottish Business Climate Collaboration will provide strategic direction and explore best practice action that members can take to fight climate change. It will also make a Pledge, due to be announced at COP26, to encourage other businesses to adopt a series of measures in order to collaborate and work towards achieving net zero.

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