Northumberland County Council
Morpeth
The ambition
Northumberland County Council’s 40-year-old car park was upgraded with the aim to modernise the facility and prepare it for a more sustainable energy future.
RenEnergy worked in collaboration with UK Power Networks Services (UKPNS), a key provider of electricity distribution covering South East England, the East of England and London. They specialise in solving energy challenges through practical and innovative solutions, enabling their clients to embrace the energy transition and reduce their carbon footprint.
Headquartered in County Hall in Morpeth, the Council is working toward cutting its carbon emissions in half by 2025 by utilising alternative sources of energy. This approach will save significant energy costs each year and reduce the reliance on fossil fuels to power their main building. Energy solutions aimed at reducing costs and improving the resilience of their energy supply will be implemented in other public car parks throughout the County.
The solution
A new steel frame was engineered and constructed to ensure regulatory compliance in line with Council requirements. It safeguards the integrity of the car park’s drainage system, offers protection for electric vehicles and provides staff with covered walkways.
The structure supports 1,776 solar modules on gull-wing frames. The frames allow the solar panels to be positioned at an angle to optimise exposure to sunlight, ensuring efficient energy generation.
As one of the UK’s largest carport arrays, its space-efficient design utlises available areas without losing any parking spaces.
800kWp
Total installed capacity
1,776
Solar panels installed
“We've been actively engaged in supporting several Councils in the conversion of ordinary carports into energy-producing assets. Witnessing these Councils embrace this innovative technology as part of their sustainability initiatives is inspiring and paves the way for broader adoption in the future.”
Damian Baker, Managing Director, RenEnergy
“With our extensive experience tailoring solutions to our clients' unique environments, we had the expertise to design an entirely new frame structure that seamlessly accommodated integrated walkways, all while retaining every parking space.”
William Lloyd, Senior Project Manager, RenEnergy UK
The benefits
The solar energy infrastructure is expected to yield annual energy cost savings ranging from £100,000 to £150,000, creating opportunities for investments in Council services.
Solar panel-generated energy will serve as the primary power source for the main building and supply electricity to charge electric vehicles (EVs) used by the fleet and staff
Energy cost and CO2 emission reductions
CO2
Annual saving of
250 tonnes
Note that all estimated performance figures are calculated using industry-standard systems and norms, assume ideal operating conditions, and would have been estimated as at the time of the installation. CO2 equivalent analogies source