UK manufacturers and manufacturing businesses are being urged to invest in solar PV as energy bills, carbon pressures and supply chain demands continue to climb.
This is according to a new guide from nationwide renewable energy installers, Geo Green Power, which outlines how factories and processing plants can utilise rooftop and ground-mounted solar PV to reduce overheads, lower emissions, and strengthen their position in competitive supply chains.
Geo Green Power’s research within its guide – ‘Powering Production’ – has also found that manufacturing remains the UK’s most energy-intensive sector, consuming more than 83 terawatt hours of electricity in 2021 – almost enough to power every home in the country.
This highlights a concern because volatile prices and policy levies have made energy one of the largest and least predictable costs for the sector, squeezing margins at a time when many businesses are already facing demands to decarbonise from customers and investors.
Against this backdrop, the Powering Production guide aims to help manufacturing businesses understand the commercial, operational and environmental benefits of solar PV. At the same time, it offers practical, informed steps towards reducing operational costs, gaining greater energy independence and resilience, and cutting carbon emissions.
The guide also explores real-world examples of businesses already benefiting from solar PV, including Swiftool Precision Engineering, a family-run supplier to the aerospace and defence industries, which worked with Geo Green Power to install a 617 kWp rooftop system.
The installation has subsequently enabled Swiftool to generate a significant share of its own electricity on site, cutting reliance on the grid while providing clear, reportable carbon savings to meet growing ESG requirements from its client base.
Andrew Sanderson, Marketing Manager at Geo Green Power, said: “Solar PV is no longer just an environmental decision, it’s a commercial one. For manufacturers, it provides immediate cost control, long-term certainty and a demonstrable sustainability story that strengthens bids and reassures customers.”
Powering Productionalso examines the funding options available to manufacturing firms that are interested in investing in solar. This ranges from options on ‘Power Purchase Agreements’ that require no upfront investment to self-funded systems that deliver payback in as little as three to seven years.
The guide is now available for download at: https://www.geogreenpower.com/solar-guide-for-commercial-sectors/
