£50m investment from green Leicester company
Our Generation, the Leicester-based renewable technology provider, has pledged £50m for school solar power. The private sector funding was secured by the company as a result of the government’s feed in tariff scheme, and will enable hundreds of schools to have solar electricity systems installed free of charge.
Birchwood High School in Bishop’s Stortford was the first to be fitted out with the solar electricity system, which would have cost over £200,000 to install.
Feed in tariffs are payments made to energy users for the renewable electricity they generate. The system gives each institution low-cost, fixed-price energy for 25 years.
The investment will enable Our Generation to roll its programme out across England, Scotland and Wales, offering schools fixed rate payment packages at rates much lower than those for traditional ‘brown fuels’.
Ian Goodwin, director of Our Generation, added: “The feed in tariff has without doubt been a catalyst for securing our private sector funding. With this in place we can now roll our programme out for schools throughout Britain, helping staff and students enjoy the benefits of renewable technology and save money.”
