Health and wellness club operator the Bannatyne Group has installed solar panels on the rooftops of a number of its health clubs, hotels and spas, following a partnership with Shawton Energy.
Eight sites have been fitted with solar panels, including hotels and spas at Bury St Edmunds, Colchester Kingsford Park, Cookridge Hall in Leeds, Norwich West, Weybridge, Wildmoor, and the Bannatyne Group’s head office in Darlington.
According to the Bannatyne Group, the installations, which consist of 967 panels and 11 inverters, have already provided significant energy savings to the group. Since their completion, each site has reportedly secured energy savings of up to 25%.
The project has been funded through a bespoke power purchase agreement (PPA) with Shawton Energy. The Bannatyne Group made no upfront investment in the installations, which were instead funded by Shawton Energy. The Bannatyne Group will now purchase the energy generated from the installations at a fixed, low-cost price, helping to shield the business from future energy price fluctuations.
Duncan Bannatyne, chief executive and chairman of the Bannatyne Group, said: “As a business, we’re committed to reducing our carbon footprint and being at the forefront of environmental responsibility in our industry. Solar power generation is a win-win solution for us and aligns perfectly with our sustainability objectives while also providing certainty on the cost of our energy, which is one of our biggest costs.”
Jamie Shaw, CEO of Shawton Energy, added: “The Bannatyne Group has shown real leadership in embracing renewable energy, and we are proud to have delivered a solution that aligns with their financial and environmental goals. Our tailored approach has ensured minimal disruption to their operations while delivering significant cost savings and carbon reductions.”
Commercial solar on the rise
The Bannatyne Group is far from the first commercial operation seeking to decarbonise and cut its costs through solar, or even the first health and wellness firm considering this option.
In November of last year, British Gas parent company Centrica and solar PV developer Push Power completed the installation of solar PV systems at ten David Lloyd Leisure Clubs across the UK. The installations varied in size, from a 300kWp, 708-panel installation in Manchester to a 631kWp, 1485-panel installation in Cambridge.
Chinese manufacturer JA Solar provided panels for all the sites, with SolarEdge supplying the inverter and optimiser equipment. David Lloyd Leisure also noted that these installations will be followed by further solar developments on its other sites in the coming weeks and months.
