Cider firm goes solar

A cider and perry firm is claiming to be one of the first in the UK to have switched to solar power.


Today (September 15) Herefordshire based Butford Organics announced it has installed a 16 panel 3.9kw solar photovoltaic (PV) system on the roof of a barn.

According to the farm the panels, installed by Southern Solar, should produce more electricity than the farm needs during the summer months.

Owner Martin Harris said: “We have a good southerly aspect and have reached 3.8kw of electricity generation on the sunny days but we were very encouraged to see that it still generates good amounts of electricity on cloudy days too.”

The Butford solar system cost around £14,000 with a pay-back of around eight years.

With the current Feed-In Tariffs (FITs) rates Mr Harris believes it will also act as a good investment providing a return of 12% over its 25 year life span.

Luke Walsh

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